The ocean, mental health, and art
Last year I took a workshop titled How to Not Wake Up Tired by Dr. Saundra Dalton-Smith where she spoke about 7 different types of rest:
Physical: opportunity to use the body in a restorative way to decrease muscle tension and increase the quality of sleep
Mental: ability to quiet down your mind and focus on things that matter
Spiritual: a sense of purpose and belonging
Creative: allowing beauty to inspire awe and wonder
Emotional: freedom to authentically express feelings
Social: wisdom to recognize relationships that lift you from the ones that exhaust you
Sensory: downgrade the onslaught of sensory input received from devices, noise, fragrances, etc.
Although all types of rest are essential, I want to share what I learned about creative rest.
Do you brainstorm solutions at work? Are you in charge of the social aspects of team building? What about trying to plan an event with family and friends? All of that requires innovative problem solving and you can benefit from a creative rest.
Have you ever felt calm and at peace while sitting at the beach listening to the waves? What about while floating on a boat at the lake or floating upside down in a river? A significant amount of people experience creative rest around bodies of water.
Creative rest cannot be explained because it varies from one person to the next. However, we know that some people experience it through nature, art, music, dance, watching a play, etc. There is good news, if you experience creative rest by being close to bodies of water then there is a way to replicate that experience!
Dr. Dalton-Smith says:
“We looked at the MRI’s of the brains of individuals who had been at the actual beach looking at the bodies of water. Then, another MRI was taken and studied after the same individuals had just looked at a picture of the body of water. Finally, another MRI was taken of the same people after they had looked at colors that resembled water (aqua, blues, etc)…And the amazing thing was that the activity inside of the brain was the same whether they were looking at the actual body of water, an image of the body of water, or a color that represents bodies of water.”
How incredible is that?! So, what does that mean if we do not live near bodies of water, do not have extra time to take trips, or just live in a place where it has none? You can bring those elements into your environment instead.
Easy things you can do:
If you find creative rest through nature, bring in plants into your work area, or get a vase with flowers.
Put a picture of a body of water that you enjoy as your lock screen on your phone or your desktop.
If you like art, choose a work that brings you mental peace and hang it in your workspace.
I would add, create an artwork that brings you mental peace (my addition)
The beautiful thing about this is that you don’t always have to be thinking “Oh, let me make sure I am doing something today for my creative rest.” You can literally set it and forget it and in those down times when you look at your phone, desktop, plant, or art, you will benefit from that short creative rest (apparently, this is another reason why companies have adapted accent walls in calming colors).
How have I incorporated creative rest into my daily life? I changed the lock screen on my phone! I can say that having to look at it multiple times a day because of all those notifications can be draining but I have noticed that I get a jump of joy right before unlocking my phone as I look at those cute, blue jellyfish. I also approach my art journaling in this way when I need a mental break. I focus on drawing, collating, or painting with colors that remind me of the ocean or the pattern of the waves, or the general sense of being in nature.
Bodies of Water
After I took the workshop with Dr. Saundra Dalton-Smith, I started reading Blue Mind by Wallace J. Nichols. The biggest body of water is the ocean and many of us feel a connection to it, it soothes us, or thrills us, inspires us, or all of the above. Nichols came up with the name Blue Mind to explain and explore the connection between water and humans. He defines Blue Mind as “a mildly meditative state characterized by calm, peacefulness, unity, and a sense of general happiness and satisfaction with life in the moment.” Callum Roberts, marine biologist, notes that our “relationship with the sea stretches back through time…we are creatures of the ocean.”
Although having some perception of nature around us like an artwork, going to a city park, or imagining ourselves in a natural environment is better than nothing, “all of our senses are craving the full ‘nature’ experience.”According to Nichols, water plays “the most beneficial role in keeping us in touch with the sensory world.” Have you been close to the water and noticed how the smell, sound, and waves help quiet and relax your brain? How does this happen?
Water is changing all the time, but it is also familiar. The waves have a constant rhythm, but the little changes create surprise and novelty. Close your eyes and think back to when you were close to the water, remember the “sounds, the sights, the smells, all changing moment to moment yet essentially staying the same.”
The interesting part is that the changes we perceive keep our brain alert , and curious but doesn’t overwhelm us, therefore we can still focus. Nichols highlights that Blue Mind is not a way to distract our mind, but “it’s helping us focus…experiencing a mindful yet restful focus.”
Great places to find images
If you are like me, and some of those free Google images do not tickle your fancy, here are some great resources where you can find some wonderful images for your creative rest and Blue Mind. You can also start your own art journaling practice and print out images from these great open-access sources! Sit in a place that you find relaxing, play some music or light a candle and give yourself time to explore the images, create and have a mindful rest.
Monterey Bay Aquarium
Smithsonian Open Access
Met Museum Open Access
The Art Institute of Chicago Open Access