What is Creative Wellness?

We are in our 10th month of existence at the School of Creative Wellness. Entering into Autumn, as the founder and director, I have spent time reflecting on what has happened so far this year, what the business means to me, how it resonates with the community we are building and what I can improve and develop.

So firstly, as the founder of SCW I want to explore the question - What is Creative Wellness?

Creative Wellness is the idea that good health involves every aspect of your life, it is holistic. It is not just about diet or exercise or psychology, it is about how you express yourself too. It is about multiple aspects of living well all being nurtured simultaneously.

For me personally, creativity is is a key characteristic and underpins everything I do and how I approach life. It has been my life in arts and design education and practice for decades. However, I understand that the idea of being creative can seem intimidating for many. It can trigger fear, the inner critic, the ‘I am not talented or creative’ inner voice. Let me reassure you that everyone has the capacity to create just like everyone can do yoga. You don’t need talent or even skill you don’t need to ‘look’ like an artist or someone who does yoga. You need an open mind and to train your mind to notice, to observe, to imagine and to play. Without fear of failure and without comparison.

How often do you engage all of your senses? To notice, to hear, to touch, to smell and to taste? How often do you savour a moment?

You could practice by walking and taking your gaze away from your phone to notice the skyline, by scanning a panoramic view, by listening to an overheard conversation, by taking a walk where you don’t know the destination, by taking a photo of something beautiful, by collecting a natural object such as a conker or a fir cone or by noticing the taste on in your mouth at different times in the day. Observation, really noticing, drinking in the scenes of life around you and within you. These small actions may feel pointless or difficult at times but with regular practice the positive effects have tremendous impact.

Maybe try smiling at someone and noticing the response, the eyes the facial expressions. If you like to capture moments with a pen or pencil or a camera or just with your eyes and ears it doesn’t matter it is the act of noticing the ignored that is mindful. Immersing yourself in the present moment. Not thinking about the week so far, or what is to come. Just being fully immersed in the now and noticing how that feels, for you, right now. No judgement, no comparison, just noticing.

Perhaps start a collection in a box of things that bring you joy. Photos, objects, memories, textures, symbols, emblems that make up your identity, your curiosity and make you feel good. Collect articles, texts, recipes and books and anything that sparks inspiration or makes you feel something. . Get it out each month to add to it. To look feel smell and connect with your collection.

Creativity can also be about problem solving or taking things apart and remaking them without fully knowing what the end result will be, then making links between things. Also not being afraid to release things that don’t serve you, in order to create space to add new positive things in your life. This is where the magic can happen, in the unexpected. The collision, the new formations of things whether they are words, thoughts or actions visuals or objects, tangible or imagined. Explore things you have never tried before, without expectation.

The journey and the process is so important, often without a known end goal. This ability to lose yourself in a process, without pressure or fear, just for the simple act of enjoyment, then observing how it makes you feel, will lead to new ways of thinking and seeing. New connections can be made and a constant process of connection and reflection is mindfulness in action. It can just be for 5 minutes per day. The more you do it the more natural it feels and more possibilities and opportunities present themselves to you along the way.

Try reaching out to connect with others who you find inspiring, who have knowledge or experience you wish to cultivate. Initiate conversations in your locale. Human connection boosts our wellbeing. Reach out. Talk to strangers. Savour small moments without pressure and without an end objective, purely for the sake of doing it, engaging and noticing.

Move your body everyday with kindness, in any way that feels good for you. Everybody is different and every body is different. Ask your body how it feels, what it needs and respect the answer, whether it is rest and gentle walks or stretching or activities to strengthen and build. Just doing 30 mins of gentle movement a day will boost your wellbeing. Take a walk in your lunch hour or after dinner.

I have found the process of designing yoga classes so creative. The lesson plan, the people, their needs and the flow of the classes I create, how I choose to use language, how that makes people feel, this, to me is such a rewarding and creative process. I get instant feedback. I can see how what I am doing is being received then reflect, adjust, develop and learn through iteration. Incremental steps. It is such a joy.

Playfulness and curiosity can also be practiced. The seeking out of things that make you feel good, that make you feel sensations, emotions and feelings can be practiced in small ways, as regular habits.  Collecting and noticing things, people, information that aligns to your values as you progress through life helps you form your idea of self.

I am skilled in building confidence in people to do this. To reiterate, the act ‘to create’ means to bring something into being, to actively birth something new. To make connections between things, to reflect, to take things apart and remake them. This act of creativity can be applied to many areas of life. To engage in craft and use your hands, to take a photograph of something you love, to write a special message to someone you love are all mindful activities. You are in the moment, engaging different parts of your brain and connecting to the materials, the environment you are in or to the feelings you have. There is a direct parallel here with the practice of yoga.

For me, creativity has led me to be curious, to find my voice, to solve problems in new ways, to explore my identity and the world around me in fresh new ways as I progress through life. This is not a linear journey, it is often full of accidents and mistakes; opportunities for learning. This process is about patterns; noticing, recognising and creating new ones. It is an opportunity to lean into life in the fullest, kindest, and most beautiful way.

At the School of Creative Wellness we harness this expertise and help others to use creativity, movement and mindfulness to reframe, to find joy and to explore life inwardly and outwardly.

This is a way of being, a state of mind, a way of practicing and learning and being in the fullest and most rewarding of ways. This requires a certain amount of vulnerability and a commitment to a practice of continuous learning, unlearning and, most importantly; kindness to self. This is creative wellness.

There are phases in life that are really tough and you may feel you have lost your sense of self, we can provide the methods you need to integrate self-care and magic back into your life.

At the school of creative wellness we have the tools insights and knowledge to help you on this journey to recalibrate lead a healthy and enriched life in a truly holistic way.

We have exciting plans in development for 2024, so please encourage anyone you feel would benefit from a bit of creative wellness in their lives to sign up to our newsletters.