Artists have the incredible ability to express their emotions through their art, but this comes with struggles, like creative blocks and unpredictability. As a result, artists are 10 times more likely to struggle with depression than individuals with other careers. EMDR therapy has emerged as a treatment option for individuals struggling with depression, including artists. Here are a few things discussed about what artist depression is and how EMDR can treat it.

Artist’s Depression

Art requires sensitivity and depth, making artists prone to staying in deep emotional states, whether positive or negative. Unfortunately, sadness is a common emotion here, leading to depression. An artist’s career also pressures them to produce new and different art to earn, and the creation of art is taxing. This, combined with the fear of failure, self-doubt, and excessive critique, can lead to many psychological and emotional challenges. Artist's depression signs are creative blocks, lack of motivation, self-criticism, inadequacy, and less sense of self-worth.

What Is EMDR Therapy?

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy is an evidence-based approach that has gained recognition for its effectiveness in treating many mental health conditions, including depression. It was initially designed to treat trauma and PTSD. EMDR therapy is beneficial in healing emotional wounds and helping you process distressing memories and experiences. Here are a few effects it can have on your mental health and well-being.

1. Makes Traumatic Memories Less Negative

Depression can belong to unresolved past traumatic events. Like everyone, artists may have faced traumatic events that have affected their mental health. EMDR therapy can help you delve into these past traumatic events that have left lasting imprints on your emotional well-being and change them into healthier memories. You can regain your emotional balance and liberate yourself from your traumatic past by releasing the emotions associated with these memories.

2. Gets Rid of Negative Feelings

Artists often struggle with negative self-beliefs that inhibit their creative potential and affect their mental health. EMDR therapy helps you reprocess these negative beliefs and instead creates compassion and acceptance for yourself by replacing these negative feelings with positive ones and working toward adaptive cognition.

3. Creates Emotional Resilience

EMDR therapy gives you essential tools to enhance your emotional resilience. It can help you process difficulties in the creative process by teaching you coping mechanisms and methods to manage stress, anxiety, and depression symptoms. By treating these unlying issues, EMDR therapy helps artists to reconnect with their creative flow and develop a positive self-perception. Treating your depression with EMDR therapy can give you renewed inspiration, artistic expression, and a rekindling of the joy found in the creative process.

How Does EMDR Therapy Work?

During your session, your therapist will make you start bilateral stimulation and access your traumatic memories. Bilateral stimulation involves stimulating both sides of the brain to help you access your subconscious mind and process everything stored there. Painful and traumatic memories and insecurities are brought up to make you face the memory in a safe setting so you can sort your thoughts and emotions out.

By taking your therapist's orders, like making eye movements, auditory cues, and tapping, you can reprocess your traumatic memories and thoughts and view them differently so they don't feel traumatic again. After your session, you may have vivid dreams, insights, or memory recall, which is a part of your healing process. You might need six or more sessions of EMDR therapy to feel a difference.

Endnote

Artist depression can give you a creative block and hinder your full potential for artistic expression. However, EMDR therapy can help you get over this depression by making your traumatic memories healthier and getting rid of negative feelings to create emotional resilience. EMDR therapy is performed by therapists through bilateral stimulation using auditory cues, eye movements, and tapping to reprocess traumatic memories and thought processes. Treating depression in this way can unleash your creativity and enthusiasm for making your art.