Power of Pottery

Photo by: Courtney Cook @courtneymcook

Forming clay into a piece of pottery will bring life to a mug, bowl or vase, but more importantly it comes with positive side affects for mental health. Something indescribable transpires from within while guiding clay in sync with the rhythm of a potter’s wheel. Creating pottery can be a conduit for inner wisdom and emotion to move through the body and into the clay. Time also ceases to exist as the hands are working with the speed of the wheel to keep the clay from collapsing. Having an outlet such as pottery reduces stress by releasing serotonin, dopamine and oxytocin into the body. Communication between the brain and the body improves mental health with regular practice. Zero skills or natural creativity are needed to get started working with clay on or off a potters wheel. If there is any hesitation in getting started, simply blindfold yourself and feel your way through using your instincts and your mind’s eye. The end result of the finished piece will be a beautiful manifestation of what you were experiencing in the moment of its creation. Sorry if that was too deep or woo woo. Working with clay has inadvertently gotten me through very challenging early days of the grieving process. I somehow managed to escape the reality of the overwhelming grief that was a constant for those few hours. I was completely focused in the present moment using all of my abilities in an attempt to create something useful. Afterwards, I felt immense gratitude for that emotional break that will never be forgotten. To say that making pottery is healing to a broken heart would be an extreme understatement.

Creating pottery, welding, soldering and knitting are examples of design and wellness working together.

If you’re in the Philadelphia area, please check out Yay Clay and The Clay Studio. They are both led by passiontate and talented potters.

Mental Health + Design

Health is impacted through design and has the power to induce positive shifts in thought and behavior to improve overall wellbeing. The brain has the ability to heal the body through the practice of neuroplasticity by creating pathways to rewire old programming for ultimate healing. In an ideal world the practices of natural medicine blended with modern medicine for an immersive healing experience.

Chances are you’ve been to a hospital more times than you ever wanted. You mostly likely experience a wave of sadness and ick attached to hospital memories. The distinct smells and coldness of the long hallways slathered with out dated art work leave a haunting imprint. Imagine what a hospital experience could be like if the care of health was treated holistically for full mind and body healing. Colors, art, music, activities, smells and personal treatment would contribute to recovery rather than creating a revolving door effect. Thankfully, some well-known hospitals are starting to incorporate design into their patient spaces and how patience are engaged while in recovery. It will be nice to one day see hospital menus evolve into fresh, whole, organic healing spices and foods based on the individual needs of patients.

Emergency medicine is an incredible area of health care with so many lives being saved by brilliant practitioners. The waiting rooms, however, are anxiety inducing and heart breaking to see people suffering for up to twenty hours or longer. These areas desperately need a shake up. Maybe hospital redesign will be next on the list for natalini design to contribute concepts for combining design with wellness. (winky face)

Photo by: Total Shape @totalshape

Art + Mental Health

Photo by: Total Shape @totalshape

Design and art impact mental health in numerous ways. The act of creating art releases dopamine from the brain causing euphoria, concentration, and enhanced motivation. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that delivers a dose of euphoria throughout the body followed by a sense of accomplishment upon completing a task or project. Regular creative activity aids in preventing depression and reducing anxiety while keeping hormones in balance. Creating artwork does not replace conventional medical treatment, however, it can enhance the progress of achieving consistent mental wellness. Creative activities allow an individual to take responsibility and participate in their own healing process. Painting, pottery, music, and crafting will not override or interfere with conventional healing modalities so it is important to keep an open mind when exploring creative outlets. Creativity is a spark capable of igniting the mind and body in which together has unlimited healing power.

Choose a creative activity to get lost in the process and then relish in the completion detached from the outcome. Over time a creative practice may work its way into your daily routine even for just a few minutes.

Grateful for My...

Photo by: Gabrielle Henderson @gabriellefaithhenderson

Has a stranger ever asked you why you were so happy? Well, that happened to me this week. I smiled at a gentleman and he asked what I was so happy about, and I blurted out, “I’m alive!” I truly am grateful each and everyday for my beautiful life from my family, friends, home, bed, water, food to my hair, health, fingernails and any minor ache and pain because it’s all part of my human experience. Time goes by so fast so that I take as many mental snapshots of moments. In the morning, no matter what grizzly beast is starring back at me, I grit my teeth and say, “I love you…no matter what.” Self love is a windy road with plenty of potholes, so I have chosen to throw up my hands and say “weee,” going over them to bring a bit of lighthearted silliness to a seemingly rough day.

What are you grateful for in your life? Think about all of the conveniences that allow you to enjoy your life, the people who teach you lessons, those who make you laugh and the health and psychical abilities you have in this moment. You may be surprised at how abundant your life truly has been.

Psychotherapy

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is one of several types of Psychotherapy.

Photo by: Hello I’m Nik @helloimnik

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy or CBT assists in replacing negative behavior or harmful thoughts with more accurate outlook and positive action steps.

CBT addresses disorders such as anxiety, trauma, depression, eating and a variety of emotional imbalances with physical symptoms.

In a CBT therapy session a qualified psychotherapist will guide a patient through the process of describing an emotion or dynamic that creates a disturbance in their life. The patient is asked to put physical characteristics on this emotion, such as what size or material would this be made of if this emotion was an object. The patient will be guided in “asking” this object what it is trying to tell the patient or what is wants from them. This technique minimizes the full body effects that anxiety or PTSD from a trauma can have by placing permitters and identifiable characteristics to then be addressed head-on. Once the confines of a “physical” description have been established, the patient is urged to journal about these experiences and continue to add any new insights that come to mind throughout the days following the session. Follow up sessions are important as there are many layers contributing to physical and lifestyle disturbances.

From my personal experience, psychotherapy has been the best and most effective form of therapy since it focuses on an individual taking full responsibility for everything they are and everything they have experienced. Psychotherapy deals with the actual events of a person’s story or past traumas in smaller doses. This allows for each session to be productive and the patient feeling like they’ve uncovered a hidden secret within them. It is normal for “homework” to be suggested to continue progression of new developments outside of the sessions.

When I took full responsibility for everything in my life, even things that happened to me, I was in control in how I moved forward. Whereas, with conventional talk therapy, the typical “blame game” left me more stressed and sad with zero answers. After a regular therapy session, I felt like I talked for an hour and dumped all of my “stuff” onto another person without much response, feedback or a next step. This did not work for me so I kept searching for ways to be guided in addressing issues and moving through them, create a productive plan and change what did not serve me. I also learned forgiveness for anything I could not control.

“Forgiveness isn’t approving what happened. It’s choosing to rise above it.”

— Robin Sharma

Psychotherapy and CBT are very detailed topics and require further investigation. If you’re on a path to heal past from emotional traumas, consider looking into a form of psychotherapy that would best serve your needs.