Mental Health as a Daily Practice and Lessons from a Creative Life

Mental health is a skill. Not a destination. Not a checklist. Not even a fixed state of being. It’s something I work on every day through art, boundaries, rituals, and a lot of unlearning.

As someone living with chronic illness, navigating neurodivergence, and juggling a creative career, I’ve had to build my own toolkit. Over time, I’ve found practices that help me stay grounded when the world doesn’t make space for soft, sensitive, or nonlinear people.

If you’re also building toward better mental health, here are a few skills that have helped me and might help you too.

Rest Is a Skill, Not a Luxury

Burnout is often disguised as dedication. I’ve worked in fast-paced kitchens, on tight deadlines, and in communities where survival felt like the baseline. Slowing down felt like failing. But over time, I had to unlearn that.

Now, I schedule rest. Not just sleep, but actual recovery. Doing nothing. Being still. Saying no.

If you don’t know where to start, make yourself a “rest menu”, like a short list of low-energy activities that restore you. A warm bath. A five-minute meditation. Music with no lyrics. Lying in the sun. Choose from it without guilt.

Make Art Without a Goal

Art is how I breathe. But when I make it only for a client, a show, or a post, I start to disconnect from why I began in the first place. When I let myself create without expectations, I give my nervous system a break.

Paint, write, collage, cook, sing—whatever helps you feel present. It doesn’t have to be good. Unless it’s food, then it has to be good. But just make it yours.

Use Ritual as Regulation

I love turning the wheel of the year (Litha, Samhain, Beltane) into touchpoints for renewal. You don’t need elaborate spells. Light a candle. Pull a tarot card. Drink tea with intention. Breathe in. Breathe out.

Ritual gives rhythm to chaos. It tells your body: I’m here. I’m listening. I’m safe.

Visibility Is Healing On Your Terms

Living with chronic illness means I’ve often been told to shrink. To hide symptoms. To perform capability. But every time I show up as I am, in my writing, my art, my Etsy shop, I reclaim space.

Your story doesn’t have to be polished to be powerful. Share what you’re ready to share. Keep the rest for yourself. Both are acts of strength.

Design Your Life Like a Creative Project

My design background taught me something I never expected: how to adapt. In branding, we test, refine, evolve. I started applying that to my life.

What’s not working? What small shift can I try this week? What helps me feel more like myself?

Mental health isn’t all or nothing. It’s iterative. Flexible. Allowed to change with the seasons.

You Don’t Have to Heal Alone

I’ve found community in unexpected places, art collectives, disability justice spaces, Instagram DMs. Healing isn’t always quiet or solitary. Sometimes it’s messy, collaborative, and communal.

Start with one connection. A friend. A mutual. A text thread. Let yourself be held, even a little.

Final Thought: Your Way Is Valid

If your mental health practice looks different from what you see online, that’s okay. You don’t have to journal every morning or meditate for 20 minutes to be making progress. You don’t have to be okay all the time to be healing.

Your softness is not a flaw. It’s a gift.

And the way you care for yourself? That’s the art.