Creative Health

Imagine closing your eyes, taking a deep inhale of fresh air through your nose and being gently guided in creative ways of exploring the natural world around you.

Imagine sharing this experience alongside others without any social pressure, each person engaging in their own journey of expression.

Can you remember the last time you attended a creative class or workshop, and the increased energy you felt afterward?  Maybe you struggled with an aspect during the process but then enjoyed a giggle with others as they too were trying something new?

The power of getting out and engaging in creative activities within the community carries more benefits than we might realise, and as more and more research is showing, it is quite the antidote for feelings of stress, low mood, anxiety and loneliness. 

With the immense strain on the health care system stemming from mental ill-health concerns where medication isn’t the appropriate answer, these types of experiences, known as Creative Health, are providing doctors with a credible, non-clinical alternative to addressing health and wellbeing.

Through a scheme called Social Prescribing, health professionals are finding ways to connect patients with Creative Health experiences in their communities that can offer support for their particular needs.  This holistic approach to healthcare is providing communities with a sense of empowerment as they take an active role in their own well-being.  

A few key components that turn a creative experience into a Creative Health Experience

* Focus on the process

When we shift our focus from an end result and concentrate instead on consciously letting go of expectation and judgement and opening ourselves to the process of exploration, we are more likely to sink into a peaceful place where the nervous system naturally calms, and stress gently falls away. 

* Sense of Community

Group sessions allow participants to be reminded that they are not alone, that there are others experiencing stress in their own ways, and this shared experience creates a sense of belonging and purpose, filling a fundamental human need. 

* Creativity as a tool for wellbeing 

Creative activities are used as an anchor to keep attention in a place of curiosity, newness, hope and possibility, while simultaneously stimulating the mind and inspiring new perspectives.

* Focus on Nature 

Vast amounts of research show the benefits of spending time in nature.  Simply being in nature, without having to do anything at all, has a calming effect on the nervous system. When Creative Health activities can take place in natural settings their benefits multiply. 

* Trauma-sensitive approach

Creative Health experiences offer a warm environment that seeks to welcome each participant in a way that supports their unique needs, where sharing is always optional. 

Although these experiences aren't a magic cure, the reported positive effects come pretty close, and they could be the thing that makes the difference needed on a given day.

Our sessions at Fettle Fields were created for just this purpose and are guided in a way that allows participants to steer their own journey towards finding what feels good to them. 

In this fast-paced world, absorbed in technology that often pulls us further apart, sometimes we just need a place that invites us to step back and take a breath....so we can then proceed with intention at our own pace.