Embrace creativity for more vibrance and less anxiety

I have been thinking a lot about passive consumption lately. We are all attached to our phones. As I drove out of my neighborhood this morning, I saw several teenagers walking to the bus stop. Each one was looking at their phones while walking down the sidewalk. I continue to be amazed by this little mobile computer in my pocket - I can navigate streets in a foreign country, manage my bank accounts, learn a new language, create a summer music playlist, access every contact I've ever made, and check my surgery schedule all on this little handheld device. But as incredibly useful as this thing is, what I do most is scroll through garbage and consume anxiety-provoking news. The average American picks up her phone 144 times per day (1)!! Our phones have become the thing we reach for at the first inkling of boredom, stress, and anxiety. But by constantly looking for something - entertainment? inspiration? relief? - we end up procrastinating, comparing, doom scrolling, and allowing our thoughts, emotions, and time be completely hijacked.

There is a strong association between excessive screen time and poor mental health. A quick search returned multiple studies consistently showing that increased screen time, news consumption, and social media use is directly associated with increased rates of anxiety and depression (2-7). Alternatively, studies show that creative interventions reduce anxiety, decrease stress, and improve well-being (8-9).

Oprah Winfrey and Mel Robbins both advocate not looking at your phone first thing in the morning, and ideally sleeping with the phone in an adjacent room. This way you can decide what to think and how to feel as you get your day started, rather than allowing your phone to dictate your input, thoughts, and emotions. Marie Forleo, author of Everything is Figureoutable (10), coined the mantra "Create before you consume." She recommends avoiding all input in the morning (emails, social media, news, and screen time) until you do these three things: move your body in some way, journal, and focus on your breath for at least ten seconds.

So instead of passively consuming, create. Create, create, create. The idea of being creative can be a bit intimidating. It can conjure up images of developing original oil paintings, composing music, or building metal sculptures. But creating can simply mean bringing forth something that wasn't there earlier. A well designed weekly schedule. A food plan for your family. An outfit. A crayon drawing with your daughter. A completed to-do list. A planted flower.

Rick Rubin writes in The Creative Act: A Way of Being (11), "Creativity is not a rare ability. It is not difficult to access. Creativity is a fundamental aspect of being human. Creativity doesn't exclusively relate to making art. We all engage in this act on a daily basis. To create is to bring something into existence that wasn't there before. It could be a conversation, the solution to a problem, a note to a friend, the rearrangement of furniture in a room, a new route home to avoid a traffic jam."

Elizabeth Gilbert writes in Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear (12), "while the paths and outcomes of creative living will vary wildly from person to person, I can guarantee you this: A creative life is an amplified life. It's a bigger life, a happier life, an expanded life, and a hell of a lot more interesting life. Living in this manner -- continually and stubbornly bringing forth the jewels that are hidden within you -- is a fine art, in and of itself."

Not only will creating help you to manage stress and avoid sadness, it will lead to more vibrance and sparks of joy in your life. It will give you a little pep in your step. It will give you a sense of control that is completely paralyzed when just engaging in passive consumption. A significant amount of the passive consumption we are inundated with is about tearing down. Aggressive tweets, negative news, fashion critiques, social media comments. Oh the comments. It can bring. you. down. But creating is all about building. Constructing. Composing. Looking up.

So go out there and create a beautiful life for yourself. Design it from the ground up. Don't pick up your phone in the morning until you have created a healthy breakfast and designed your day. Don't simply watch other people create their lives. Get creative about how you can be creative each day. Make dinner. Make plans. Don't allow your phone or anyone else to dictate your input. You decide. You design. Build something - anything - and you will build yourself up.

Links and Citations:

1. https://www.pcmag.com/news/americans-check-their-phones-an-alarming-number-of-times-per-day

2. Thorisdottir IE, Sigurvinsdottir R, Kristjansson AL, Allegrante JP, Lilly CL, Sigfusdottir ID. Longitudinal association between social media use and psychological distress among adolescents. Prev Med. 2020 Dec;141:106270. doi: 10.1016/j.ypmed.2020.106270. Epub 2020 Oct 5. PMID: 33031868; PMCID: PMC8389076.

3. Liu M, Kamper-DeMarco KE, Zhang J, Xiao J, Dong D, Xue P. Time Spent on Social Media and Risk of Depression in Adolescents: A Dose-Response Meta-Analysis. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2022 Apr 24;19(9):5164. doi: 10.3390/ijerph19095164. PMID: 35564559; PMCID: PMC9103874.

4. Ratan ZA, Parrish AM, Zaman SB, Alotaibi MS, Hosseinzadeh H. Smartphone Addiction and Associated Health Outcomes in Adult Populations: A Systematic Review. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2021 Nov 22;18(22):12257. doi: 10.3390/ijerph182212257. PMID: 34832011; PMCID: PMC8622754.

5. Deyo A, Wallace J, Kidwell KM. Screen time and mental health in college students: Time in nature as a protective factor. J Am Coll Health. 2024 Nov;72(8):3025-3032. doi: 10.1080/07448481.2022.2151843. Epub 2023 Feb 16. PMID: 36796079.

6. https://psycnet.apa.org/doiLanding?doi=10.1037%2Ftra0001202

7. https://www.apa.org/monitor/2022/11/strain-media-overload

8. Aaron, R. E., Rinehart, K. L., & Ceballos, N. A. (2011). Arts-based interventions to reduce anxiety levels among college students. Arts & Health, 3(1), 27–38. https://doi.org/10.1080/17533015.2010.481290

9. Jensen A, Bonde LO. The use of arts interventions for mental health and wellbeing in health settings. Perspect Public Health. 2018 Jul;138(4):209-214. doi: 10.1177/1757913918772602. Epub 2018 Apr 30. Erratum in: Perspect Public Health. 2018 Sep;138(5):288. doi: 10.1177/1757913918789047. PMID: 29708025.

10. https://www.booksamillion.com/p/Everything-Figureoutable/Marie-Forleo/9780525534990

11. https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-creative-act-rick-rubin/1141404747?ean=9780593652886

12. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1594634726?tag=randohouseinc4141-20