Therapy for Creative Blocks and Artists
Being an artist means expressing and exposing the deepest parts of yourself to the world.
This requires vulnerability and courage.
And when life becomes a little rocky, whether that be a roadblock, a mental health issue, or a “funk,” your creative process can be negatively impacted.
This can affect work, performance, and your overall well-being.
Although a creative block is usually temporary—when the individual fully relies on their creativity for financial circumstances—it can cause anxiety, doubt, and fear.
Which can understandably lead to depression, distress, and feelings of worthlessness.
Is there a rhyme or reason for creative blocks?
Although they can spring up out of thin air, normally there’s an external force that comes into play.
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Causes of Creative Blocks
- Self-doubt that pertains to both ability and talent
- Seeing powerful artistic work in the world, on TV, and on social media can be intimidating. It might seem as if everyone else is extremely successful and always coming up with the latest and greatest. However, you have to remember these final products don’t depict the hours of work, the tears, and the artists’ own creative blocks. Remember that growing in the creative field takes practice, and that you’re already on your journey to becoming a great artist.
- Facing rejection
- Artists at every level experience rejection. Yes, even the Picassos of the world. The key is to not let it lead to negative self-talk and low self-worth. This will only make it harder to create your best work.
- The continuous need for perfection
- A lot of artists are perfectionists, and need every detail to be just right in order to feel successful. You need to remember that no piece that you create will ever turn out perfect. That does not mean your work isn’t amazing.
- The dependence on substances to be creative
- When our livelihood depends on our creativity and we rely on substances to be creative, we can set ourselves on a dangerous path which can lead to substance abuse and health risks, so it is important to get help immediately. Some artists and creators might rely on certain drugs for “creative periods,” but when they exhaust their money or bodies, creative blocks often set in.
- Onset of an illness/medical condition
- Undergoing a chronic illness can cause you to become fatigued, exhausted, and lose interest in activities that you enjoy. You might start to wonder, “what is the point if my condition is just going to get worse?” You have to remember that your life is what you make of it, so take time to process before returning to your creative process.
- The death of a loved one or the end of a relationship
- Major losses and grief can often bring on depressing and negative feelings, and you might lose motivation to become creative as you try to process the grief from losing your loved one.
- Lack of financial support
- A lack of financial support can be a major hurdle to the creative process because in order to be creative, you need supplies and time. Supplies for creating can range from canvases, paints, and paintbrushes for painting, to laptops or notebooks for writing stories or poetry. If you don’t have the funds to start your creative process, it can be a real obstacle.
Research-based, personalized therapy.
At My LA Therapy, our warm and experienced therapists specialize in anxiety, depression, trauma, & relationships.
- The depletion of all creative energy after a fully immersed period of creating
- Inventing new ideas that are original can take a lot of mental work, and can use up a lot of energy in order to execute. After making your final masterpiece, it’s possible to feel extremely drained to the point where you don’t feel like creating anymore. Rest is a vital part of creativity and fuels creativity in the long run, though it can be challenging to trust the magic will return in times of rest.
- A sudden loss of meaning and purpose
- Sometimes we feel aimless and we aren’t sure why. This may be due to unaddressed deeper issues we need to explore and unearth with the help of a therapist. Facing these unconscious issues may also fuel new creative work and layers of depth within your work.
- Negative thoughts/criticism
- If you are constantly criticizing your own work, or you have a very strong negative core belief, you might start thinking that nothing you ever make is good enough. This can cause you to lose hope during your creative periods, and can be yet another obstacle to creating something new. Check out our Thought Mastery Guide if you want help kicking your negative thoughts to the curb and developing healthier ways of thinking using CBT secrets.
Working with one of our trained therapists will allow you to overcome blocks and reconnect with your creativity again.
Our job is to get you to a place where your art starts to flow.
Together we will find that groove and help you get your mojo back to you can create freely and powerfully.
Want to talk?
At My LA Therapy, our highly-vetted Creative Blocks Therapists and Professional experts are selected not only for their clinical acumen but for who they are.
Our Therapy Methods
Therapy can successfully improve your life by helping you minimize your anxiety, identifying and changing underlying thought and behavioral patterns that contribute to your struggles, and providing you with strategies to decrease discomfort while restoring an overall sense of peace.
To experience true and lasting joy in our life, we must face and conquer our pain by healing our underlying trauma and confronting our fears.
See the About Therapy page for a deeper look into this process.
Our evidence-based, scientifically proven interventions are demonstrated by research to be effective in addressing a wide range of mental health issues that can affect creativity.
Learn more about our empirically based therapy modalities by visiting our Methods page.
