Art Is Medicine
Art isn’t just a hobby. It’s not a side gig for the talented or the bored. It’s an essential human function, one that supports mental health, reduces stress, and helps us tap into collective consciousness. It makes us whole.
We live in a culture saturated in anxiety, and so often we deprioritize the things that we know will ease that stress. Or it becomes another item on the to do list, making that stressful to do list even longer.
We are all born artists, it’s how our souls want to live in this world, and if we don’t give ourselves time and space to create, we suffer. We crave to make with our hands and it’s no wonder.
Making art, even simple stuff like doodling or coloring, has been shown to lower cortisol (that’s your body’s main stress hormone) and bring your system back to balance. In one study, 75% of participants showed lower cortisol levels after just 45 minutes of art-making, and it didn't matter whether they had previous art experience or not. According to Susan Magsamen, director of the International Arts + Mind Lab at Johns Hopkins, just 20 minutes of artistic engagement can help return the body to homeostasis. You don't need to be good at it. You just need to make something. The bonus is that if you spend any regular time doing something, you will get better at it too.
Process Over Product
Actually, the more you let go of the idea of “being good,” the better. The therapeutic value isn’t in the outcome, it’s in the act of making. Studies show that the process of art-making lights up the parts of the brain involved in emotional regulation, memory, and meaning-making. One large review published in PLOS ONE found that visual art-making “reduces distress, increases self-reflection and self-awareness, and normalizes heart rate and cortisol levels.” It’s so good for you!!
When you make art, your brain starts to shift gears. You move out of the hyper-verbal, critical left brain and into a quieter, more intuitive space. You might have heard of Jill Bolte Taylor, the Harvard brain scientist who had a stroke and described what it felt like when her left brain went quiet. What she found in that silence was pure presence, creativity, and peace. Making art can take you to that same place.
All of this supports what artists and healers have always known, that art is essential. It grounds us. It connects us. It helps us metabolize what we feel and remember who we are. Art isn’t optional. It’s medicine.
So if you’ve been waiting for the right time, or the right tools, or the right talent, wait no more! You’ve got this, and I’m here if you want a guide walk alongside you as you get started.