How To Make Art When You’re Sad

When we’re depressed, we don’t usually feel like undertaking any sort of project, much less a DIY art project. When you have to ration your energy just to accomplish the bare minimum each day, why would you spend that precious energy on something “unnecessary” like making art? 

But in reality, making art is utterly necessary. It’s our hobbies and interests that give us the energy to do the mundane acts of daily living that make a functional life possible. Art therapy isn’t just helpful when we’re sad, it might be just what we need to break through the fog of depression. 

“Something is always born of excess: great art was born of great terrors, great loneliness, great inhibitions, instabilities, and it always balances them.” – Anaïs Nin

How To Get Back Into Art When You’re Depressed

When we make art, we’re channeling our thoughts, feelings, and experiences into our medium of choice. This is great because it allows us to process the present and re-experience the past with new eyes. This can be challenging because when we don’t feel well, we often can’t find the motivation to do it. 

After all, transmuting the breadth, pain, and beauty of the human experience into art is hard work. But it’s the same type of hard work that goes into exercising or putting gas in your car. Even though it is hard, in fact because it is hard, it’s in our best interest to keep doing it even when energy and inspiration escape us. Here’s how:

• Appreciate More Art. There is no making art without an appreciation for the art that already exists. I implore you. Visit a museum! Read a book! Look through your old sketchbooks! Go to the movies with your friends! Even if you don’t have the energy to make art, you can be part of the artistic process by appreciating what’s already here.
• Start Recognizing Your Inner Critic. If we let our inner critic savage everything we create without mercy, we’re not going to be in the mood to create anytime soon. Our inner critic often has important messages for us to hear, but we also need to notice when they’re judging too harshly lest they hold us back.
• Learn From Your Failures. When we’ve done the work to recognize and befriend our inner critic, we can learn from failure instead of being defeated by it. One of the hardest things you face as a prospective artist is this: making art is an open invitation for failure. What if others don’t like what we make? What if we don’t like what we make? When we’ve integrated our inner critic, our greatest failures can also be our most valued lessons.

Why DIY Art Therapy Offers Anxiety Relief

Art therapy can be a powerful tool for alleviating anxiety, especially for those grappling with depression. Making art is an invitation to reconnect with ourselves in an environment that is gentle and grounding. We can process what we’re going through in a controlled, safe way where we can experience our thoughts and feelings without worrying about approval or judgment. 

• Art Therapy Is Self-Care. Ultimately, making art makes our lives better and more full. When we’re making art, we feel less anxious and depressed  because we’re fulfilling one of our mind’s fundamental needs.
• Each New Piece Is An Opportunity To Start Over. As we get older, the burden of the past can weigh heavy on us. We can’t change the past, and trying to is an exercise in denial. However, art is an opportunity to examine the past and answer the question: if we did it again, how could we do it differently?
• Art Therapy Allows Us To Befriend Our Inner Critic. Being an artist isn’t just about being a creator. It’s also an exercise in being an editor. When we return to and revise our pieces, we are putting our inner critic’s judgment to good use. Rather than tearing our work down, we’re having an open dialogue about how it can be improved. When we learn how to collaborate with our inner critic, we can use our better judgment fairly and for our own benefit. 

“You’ve got sadness in you, I’ve got sadness in me – and my works of art are places where the two sadnesses can meet, and therefore both of us need to feel less sad.” – Mark Rothko

How Art Therapy Helps With Depression

Depression can leave you disconnected from your faculties of communication, and unable to put words to your own suffering. Art is a lifeline of expression that allows us to simultaneously express ourselves and bypass language entirely. 

Raising your voice might feel as bold and impossible as bungee jumping or skydiving. Reaching out to a loved one could seem like the most distant and unrealistic fantasy you could dream of. But picking up a pencil and doing something with it? That’s not too unrealistic, I don’t think. But why will that help with your depression?

• Art Therapy Helps Us To Stop Doomscrolling. When we’re depressed, the easiest thing to reach for is our phone. After all, our phone doesn’t challenge us or help us through the challenging process of learning and growth. So if nothing else, art therapy draws our attention away from the addictive glowing rectangle in our pocket, and I think that’s worth celebrating.
• Our Hobbies Make Us Better People. When we engage in something we love—whether it’s painting, drawing, writing, or any other form of artistic expression—we are nurturing parts of ourselves that often get overlooked in the rush of daily life. If you make time for the activities that are dear to you like making art, you’re making time for yourself.
• Art Helps Us Process Big Changes. When there’s a big life transition on the table (like the death of a loved one, moving to a new place, or the end of a big relationship), art can help us survive. It’s not just a tool for putting words to your grief, art can help us find calm in the storm just by being something we value and enjoy. Your art doesn’t always have to be an act of emotional processing, it can also be a source of joy and enjoyment for you to lean on when the going gets tough.

Where Can I Find Art Therapy Counseling In St. Petersburg? 

Integrative Counsel offers virtual Art Therapy with Quinn Smalley, a certified OCD professional who also specializes in helping young adults navigate the challenges of college adjustment or other major life transitions, self-perception, and relationship issues. With a compassionate and solutions-focused approach, Quinn combines CBT  with creative expression to help clients explore their emotions and develop healthy coping strategies.

Using art as a tool for self-discovery, clients can engage in a non-verbal form of communication that can often bring new insights and clarity. Quinn’s unique approach empowers individuals to gain a deeper understanding of themselves while working towards positive change. Whether you’re managing anxiety, stress, or seeking personal growth, art therapy can offer a supportive and creative space for healing. Click here to schedule your virtual art therapy session!

Sunny Ebsary is an educator, multi-modal artist, and writer specializing in the intersection of myth and mental health. Sunny’s writing walks the line between poetic and logical, giving readers a chance to interface with the mind and imagination. Sunny’s been putting pen to paper since he was a child, writing everything from albums, novels, and plays, to essays, interactive games, and of course, many articles! While studying both psychology and writing, he realized his real passion in life was helping others unlock their creative spark. Whether he’s leading a D&D game, directing a production, or diving deep into the brain, you can be sure Sunny will be ushering you toward finding meaning in your life.