I love the title of this new book by Kathryn Vercillo, in which she details how a childhood hobby she was inspired to return to when suffering from depression helped her through a really difficult time.
Having an interest that inspires you creatively and practically and that you have to concentrate on to progress at, is a great tool in keeping your mind healthy and balanced. Just sitting slumped in front of the tv or pc allowing the images to flash in front of you will not make you feel well in any way.
So what can you do to be productive, creative, crafty and useful? Once I started talking about crochet on my weekly radio slot, people started calling in to tell me how their photography class, wood working and wood sculpting classes and even car maintenance helped them get out of their own head and concentrate their attention on something outside of themselves.
This creative work relaxes you, gives you something to talk about other than your illness and I think really importantly means you stop identifying yourself by that same illness. Who has said 'Hi, I'm Cynthia and I have ......fill in the blank' as though the most important thing about you is your mental health label!
Of course it will only be part of your wellness recovery plan but a crafty hobby is an essential mental health tool to carry in your toolkit.
Read Kathryn's full interview here...
Thanks so much for spreading the word about my new book! It's so important to find a way to heal from depression that works for you and I'm happy to be able to share how this was part of my healing program.
ReplyDeleteThanks Kathryn, I actually talked about it on my weekly radio slot yesterday as well. And I've recently joined a crochet group and found it great fun, although I'm not so very good yet!
ReplyDelete