Art Exercises for Self-Care, Mindfulness, & Growth

Carolyn Mehlomakulu, LMFT-S, ATRwww.creativityintherapy.com

Creative Renewal for Healers:

Why should you make time for creativity?

Being in the healing professions can be very rewarding, but it can also be exhausting and

draining. We give so much to others and are often faced with difficult stories and situations,

leading to burnout and compassion fatigue. In giving so much to others, most healing

professionals don’t prioritize their own self-care. But self-care is essential if we want to be

able to continue helping others, as well as have lives of passion, joy, and fulfillment.

Connecting with your personal creative energy through making art is one way that you can

practice self-care and renew your spirit as a healing professional. Making art, especially

with an attitude of mindfulness, can give you a chance to set aside your stress, immerse

yourself in an activity that is both relaxing and challenging, and rediscover the joy of making

something by hand.

Even if you don’t think of yourself as an artist, making art can have significant benefits.

Research has shown that creating art, regardless of your skill level, can significantly reduce

stress levels. Art can give you a way to be more in touch with your emotions and inner

wisdom and a safe outlet for expressing those emotions. In addition, different forms of art-

making exercise different parts of our brain, helping us to be more balanced and to

strengthen underutilized ways of processing information.

Using this book:

This guide offers a selection of art exercises for healing professionals to connect with their

creativity and renew their professional energy. Each art exercise is intended to engage and

activate the mind in a different way. You don’t need to work through them in a particular

order, but I encourage you to try them all to experience different ways of making art and the

various benefits that you can receive. I hope you will then use this experience as a jumping

off point, looking for other ways that you can maintain creativity in your life.

Approach your art-making with a mindset of playfulness and non-judgmental acceptance.

Be aware of the negative messages of your “inner critic” as they arise – fear of failure, a

need for perfection, downplaying the value of relaxation, or comparing your art to others –

and try to set them aside. Enjoy the process of creation without being overly concerned

about whether the final product is “good art” or not. Many people think of art as something

that is displayed for others to see, but art can also be private and focused on the process,

not the final product. These art exercises are intended to be for your personal reflection,

enjoyment, and growth, not to create art to be displayed.

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I have intentionally left out illustrations from this ebook. My fear is that people who are not

comfortable with making art will compare their own work to the illustrations. By leaving out

any example images, my hope is that you will better be able to trust your own art process

and create the images that are right for you. If you really want to see some examples for

inspiration, you can search online or look at some of the Creativity in Therapy blog posts.

Remember that your time spent making art and being creative is valuable. You might need

to schedule time for art-making in order to prioritize it. When you sit down to create, give

yourself time to be free of distractions and interruptions. You will likely be more relaxed if

you turn off your phone and play some soothing music while you work.

A note about materials – some of these exercises will suggest different drawing or painting

media. You can always make substitutions based on what you have available or your

preferences. Even if you have only a pencil and piece of paper, you can still get enjoyment

and benefit from these art exercises. However, I encourage you to try different media –

having plenty of color and a variety of materials will help your art-making be more enjoyable

and expressive.

You might consider starting an art journal in which to do some of these exercises. Simply

get a sketchbook or a journal with unlined pages. Keeping an art journal can help to take off

some of the internal pressure to create “good” art pieces. The purpose of an art journal is

much like a journal for writing but with a focus on images instead of words – you can put

down quick, undeveloped ideas, know that it is for your personal reflection only, and have

all your art together in one place so that you can look back over it later. Some people like to

combine writing and art journaling together in one book, so feel to try that as well.

I hope that you enjoy these art exercises as a way to practice self-care, get in touch with

your creativity, and renew your energy as a healing professional. If you have any questions

about the exercises or want to share your experience, I would love to hear from you! You

can email me at carolyn@creativityintherapy.com or look for me on Instagram

@creativityintherapy.

Wishing you creativity and renewal!

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This art exercise will help you to be more aware of your breathing and to connect with the

natural rhythms of your body. You can use any drawing medium – pencils, markers, oil

pastel, or chalks – and any size paper, but I prefer a large sheet of paper to encourage

space for deep breaths. Remember that there is really no right or wrong way to do this type

of art, just focus on what feels natural for you.

Place your pencil or drawing medium on the paper. Visualize your breath as a line and

represent this on the paper. Spend a few minutes playing with different types of lines as you

notice your breath. Try altering your breathing a bit faster or a bit slower and then notice

how this changes your lines on the page. Try changing the quality of your lines and notice

how you could change your breath to match.

Get a new sheet of paper and now focus on deep, slow breathing for relaxation. Again,

draw lines that represent your calming breaths. I like to pause as I inhale and then draw the

exhale, leaving my pencil on the page to create a continuous line. Continue for a few

minutes to let yourself relax into the calming sensations of breath, motion, and lines.

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Focusing on our senses can help to bring us in to the present moment. Being engaged and

aware in the present moment is at the core of mindfulness, helps us to be more relaxed,

and puts aside our concerns about the past or future. This exercise also encourages you to

be in touch with your creative intuition.

Use watercolor or acrylic paints on a heavy-weight paper. Put on music – I recommend

something instrumental and relaxing. Paint lines, colors, and shapes that represent the

music you are hearing. Try to match the rhythm of the music to your motions as you paint.

In addition to the music and your art, try to pay attention to what you notice in your body.

How do you react to the energy of the music? As other thoughts and distractions arise,

bring your attention back to the music and the art. Try not to worry about whether you are

doing things the “right” way, just trust your intuition as you work.

You can experiment with different types of music and see how it affects your painting.

Although any type of paint will work (or even drawing media), I particularly like to do this

exercise with watercolor on wet paper to enjoy the unpredictable effects of the wet-on-wet

paint changing and blending.

Painting to Music

Drawing Your Breath

A mandala is a circular image, often made up of symmetrical patterns (like the image on

this ebook cover). Many people find it to be a relaxing, meditative experience to draw or

color a mandala.

Start by drawing or tracing a circle for your mandala base. Then fill in the circle with

patterns, lines, and shapes. A traditional mandala design is symmetrical with lines and

shapes radiating out from the central point in a circular pattern. However, a more free-form

or asymmetrical mandala can also be enjoyable to create. Either way, the circular form

helps to give you a focus to build on and can be soothing to work with.

If you want to create a symmetrical patterned mandala, it can help to first create a template

to work from. Draw the template lightly with pencil so that you can erase it after you have

drawn the mandala over it. To create your template, draw or trace a circle, then mark the

center with a dot. Use vertical and horizontal lines to divide your circle into four quadrants.

Divide each one again with a line radiating out from the center so that you have eight

sections. Draw some smaller circles within the larger circle. Now you can use this grid as a

guide for your mandala. Start at the center dot and draw lines and shapes radiating out

from the middle. Remember that your mandala does not need to be perfect. Focus on

enjoying the process and accepting the imperfections in your art.

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Spending time in nature can be a wonderful way to de-stress, especially if you spend a lot

of your working time inside an office. Making art outdoors encourages you to slow down, as

well as to look more closely at the natural world around you.

Find objects in nature to inspire the design of your mandala. One way to do this is to start

with a traced circle and then fill in the circle with drawings of leaves and flowers. You can

create a circular pattern or an asymmetrical design in your mandala. Another way is to

choose a single natural object to trace, like an interesting leaf. Trace the object several

times within your circular mandala form, overlapping as you go. Color or paint the pattern

that is created.

Nature Inspired Mandala

Patterned Mandala

Making art to express your feelings can help you be more aware of those emotions and

then release them in a healthy way. I encourage you to try abstract expression, avoiding

symbols and words. You can use any art media – drawing media, paints, clay, even torn

paper – to do this exercise, but fluid materials like watercolor paints are believed to best

facilitate the expression of emotions. I also enjoy using soft chalk pastels for this exercise.

First, use a page for a two-minute warm up, covering the page with different types of lines

and shapes. Then do a series of five-minute pictures, one for each of the primary emotions

– happiness, anger, fear/anxiety, and sadness. Use only lines, colors, and shapes to

represent the emotions, not symbols and words. Remember that there is no right or wrong

way to do this, just focus on what feels right for you to express each emotion.

Now do a picture that represents how you are feeling today. Take a moment to check in

with yourself, noticing your emotions in this moment, your energy level, and how your body

feels. Think back on your day and the various emotions that you have felt throughout it. Use

lines, colors, and shapes to represent your feelings for today. (This is a particularly great

prompt for art journaling. Try to do this on several different days to track and express your

emotions. You don’t have to go through the warm-up and primary emotion part of the

exercise each day unless you want to.)

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Go for a walk and really focus on noticing the world around you. Collect natural objects –

stones, leaves, flowers, sticks, and seeds – that are interesting or beautiful to you. Arrange

these objects to create a pattern or image. Try to work mindfully, keeping your attention on

the present moment and the natural world in front of you.

Consciously observing with all of your senses will help you to be more aware and immersed

in the experience. Although you might choose to snap a picture to remember your art piece,

creating nature art means accepting the temporariness of what you create and simply

enjoying it for the experience.

Abstract Emotions Art

Nature Art Construction

This art exercise will help you reflect on what you have been through that has brought you

to this moment in your life. As a helping professional, you have been through a long journey

of personal experience and professional education that deserves to be acknowledged and

honored.

Take some time to think about the journey that has brought you to this time and place in

your life, both personally and professionally. What are some of the important experiences,

both positive and negative, that you have been through? What education or work

experiences have shaped your approach and knowledge as a healer? Who has walked with

you in support or otherwise impacted your life? Create an art piece that uses the metaphor

of a path or a road to represent your journey as a healing professional.

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It is important for us as healing professionals to recognize and draw on our own unique

strengths in the work we do. In addition to our inner talents, we also draw energy from the

support of others and healthy coping. Identifying these gifts and sources of strength help us

to do our best work, maintain our energy, and connect with others in an authentic way.

Draw a tree with several large leaves on it. On each leaf, write down a personal strength,

person that supports you, or a healthy way to cope with stress. Develop your tree image

with paint, drawing media, or torn paper collage.

The Healer's Journey

Tree of Strength

Creative Gratitude Journal

A daily gratitude practice is a wonderful way to combat burnout and negativity. Consciously

focusing your attention on what you are grateful for can help to decrease stress and

improve mood. Making art as part of your gratitude practice can enhance the impact.

To keep a creative gratitude journal, spend some time periodically making art in your

journal about what you are grateful for. You can do this by putting images alone or by

combining writing and art. Making this a daily habit will have the greatest impact on your

mindset and mood. However, you can also do this as a one-time exercise by creating a

larger art piece that includes many things that you are grateful for.

Going Forward

I hope that you have enjoyed these art exercises and have been able to experience some

of the benefits of art-making for self-care and personal reflection. And I hope that you keep

creating! There are many ways to keep making art a part of your life. Some of the exercises

in the ebook – like the emotions art, mandalas, and the creative gratitude journal – are

great to repeat on a consistent basis in an art journal. For more ideas, you can also take a

look at the Creativity in Therapy blog or follow me on Instagram @creativityintherapy. While

many of the exercises on the blog are ideas for therapists to use with clients, most of them

can be tried at home in your own art-making practice. You can also search on Pinterest or

other places online for art journal prompts, make art that reflects things in your life or your

environment, or go to art workshops and meetups. Remember that whatever type of art you

are doing, creativity has the power to heal and to renew your spirit.

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This exercise encourages you to envision your life – both personally and professionally – as

you really want it to be. Having a clear vision helps you to move intentionally toward your

goals and think about what you need to bring in to your life and what you need to cut out of

it. While I don’t believe that vision art will automatically manifest what you want, I think that

it can be a helpful tool for you to clarify your goals and what matters most for you, so that

you can be sure to take the right steps to move in that direction.

Find images and words that reflect the life you want to be living. Think about your

professional goals, your personal passions, your relationships, dreams for the future, and

any other aspect of your life that you want to include. I recommend working on this over a

few sessions, giving your mind time to reflect. And remember that you can always add

things later. You can find images and words for collage in magazines or print pictures from

the internet. Some people prefer to create one large art piece that contains everything;

others like to create several pages on smaller paper or in a journal.

I encourage you to really let yourself dream and hope as you work on this collage. Don’t be

stuck in a limiting mindset about what you think you can or should expect for your life. If you

come across an image that resonates with you, be sure to include it, even if you don’t really

know what it means for you right now. Look back at your vision art periodically to see how

you have moved closer to your vision or to remind yourself of what you are working for.

Vision Collage