Art Therapy for the Sober Curious
Art Therapy for the Sober Curious
Vol. 9: A Weekly Love Note
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Well hello lovely reader! It’s me, your faithful messy bun wearing weekly writer, Jess. For those of you new around here - it’s my mission to slip a little note your way every week, filled with topics related to embracing a sober lifestyle, motherhood, running, God, homeschooling, and more!
About 4 years ago, 1,438 days to be exact, I made the decision to completely remove alcohol from my life. I didn’t have what some might call a “rock bottom”, but I did have a problem with how alcohol was showing up in my life. By day, I was the fitness enthusiast, protein shake drinking Mom, inspiring those around her to live their best life. But once the clock hit 5pm, the cork was popped, the glass was full, and Mom was checking out. The back and forth between fit-mom and wine-mom was exhausting and I knew it was time for a change.
Most of you reading this have heard my story, so I’m not going to share it here today. However, I would like to share how art and creativity was (and has been) an effective, therapeutic tool throughout my alcohol-free journey.
For me, that 5pm glass of wine was a habit. It was part of my routine, it was my reward. And when we decide to change a habit, it’s not always as easy as we expect to be.
What’s that old saying… “Old habits are hard to break”?
Unfortunately, many habits feel impossible to change. They are familiar, we’re typically pretty good at them, and a lot of times they are tied up with beliefs about who we are.
I knew immediately that in order to not reach for that glass, I was gonna need a plan. The first thing I did was make sure my goal was crystal clear and that I had a new, life-giving habit that could fill that 5pm “witching-hour”.
That was the day I decided to try trading my wine glass for a paintbrush and the rest is history.
I had taken an art class in college years before and always considered myself a somewhat creative gal, but art was never a huge part of my life leading up to this point. But holy moly - art was SO incredibly helpful in those early days of sobriety. It allowed me to not only physically have something in my hand, but also provided me with a way to distract my mind, tap into my creativity, and give me an opportunity to pour my emotions onto a canvas.
As we enter the colder months, discovering a new healthy habit, such as art, can help you stay the course and who knows… you might have a lot of fun doing it, too!
Here are my Top 5 Ways Sobriety Impacts Your Creativity:
The Gift of More Time. One of the benefits many of us experience in sobriety is this magical gift of more time. Time that we used to spend thinking about drinking, drinking, and/or hungover, is now available! This magical time can now be used for your creative hobby.
Healthy Coping Mechanism. Creative activities can often help us cope with stress, emotions, relieve anxiety and depression, etc. Relieving those feelings through healthy, creative outlets provides an alternative way to cope that can help you maintain your sobriety. Drinking to cope just numbs the feelings and prolongs the healing.
Improves Self-Esteem and Confidence. Research shows that learning a new skill and being creative can actually improve your mental wellbeing. Learning a new skill can boost your self-confidence. It can make you feel happier when you practice something you enjoy, and also, when you see you’ve made progress in learning your new skill it might spill over into other areas of your life.
Allows for Self-Expression When There are No Words. In sobriety, a lot of times we have hundreds of thoughts and feelings swirling around in our minds. It can be overwhelming if we don’t have an outlet to unload them. The next time you feel down, discouraged, or “meh”, try using art to look inside. Take some time to draw your thoughts and feelings, even if it’s only for a few minutes and/or some crazy deep scribbles.
Connect with Joy. Alcohol can dull our ability to experience feelings of joy naturally. In early sobriety, it takes time to build back the ability to release organic feelings of happiness, joy, and a sense of purpose. Creativity allows us to build back that ‘muscle’ faster by creating just for the sake of creating.
So what if painting isn’t your jam? Try: journaling, take a class, cook, start a new exercise routine, learn to play an instrument, dance, make jewelry, design greeting cards, write poetry, decorate, plant a garden, crochet, sculpt, sew, build models, try woodworking, metalworking, creative writing, scrapbooking, calligraphy, flower arranging, quilting, candle making, doodling, soap making, graphic design, origami, cake decorating, photography, screen printing, etc.
What will YOU try today?
xo, Jess
Here are some of my art pieces throughout my journey:
Newest Episode on Decidedly Dry:
Episode #81: Sick of the “Detox to Retox” Cycle of Drinking? It’s Time to Look Alive, Sis! w/Jenn Kautsch
In this episode, I’m chatting with my incredibly inspiring, beautiful friend, Jenn Kautsch. Jenn is the founder and creator of the SoberSis community and leader in the Sober Curious movement. She lives in Fort Worth, Texas with her hubby of 28 years and has 2 adult children in their 20's. SoberSis was born Christmas Day of 2017 and since then more than 200K women have downloaded her free Happy Hour Survival Guide and over 30K have participated in the 21 Day Reset Challenge. Those numbers are growing every month as she works hard to get the message out to more women! She is a motivational speaker and author of Look Alive, Sis.
Fun fact, Jenn’s 21 Day Reset Challenge is the reset challenge I joined when I first became sober curious. It’s where I planted my roots, discovered the amazing benefits of being alcohol-free, and met countless, amazing women who were on a similar journey as I was. Shout out to my 2019 OG’s!!!
It was an absolute blast to have Jenn back on the show and I have a feeling you are going to simply love our chat.
Things I’m Digging:
The Perfect Non-Alcoholic White Wine for the Holidays! Last year I was determined to find a tasty non-alcoholic wine. This one was my favorite: Joyous Sparkling Wine.
My God-Curious Journey: My Bible reading has been slacking, friends. It seems like when life gets busy, it’s my morning routine that gets wonky. That being said, I made a point to go into my Bible app settings and adjust them so that every morning a daily devotional is sent to my phone. It’s the first thing I see and read in the morning. While it doesn’t come close to competing with my magical hour-long Bible study with my cousins, at least this way I’m still starting my day with scripture and the right mindset.
Currently Listening To: Obsessing over The Lumineers Essentails Playlist lately.
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One Last Thing…
I just want to take a minute and say thank you for sticking with me. If you’re receiving this email it’s because you’ve either purchased a journal, participated in a wellness challenge of mine, loved my content, purchased coaching, etc. No matter what it was, our paths crossed at some point and you’re still here. That means so much to me and YOU, my sweet friend, are the reason I continue doing what I do. Regardless of which you choose, free or paid, we’re still bff’s.
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