It’s no secret that college is a stressful time for students. With exams, homework, classes, and other general life obligations, there never seems to be any break. Anxiety, depression, and stress can come in high loads during college life. I was going through some particularly difficult semesters, and I found sometimes the best way to deal with it is just to pick up that brush and feel the healing power of art through creation.
It was my first year at Northern Arizona University; I had just transferred from community college and this environment was a bit intimidating. I didn’t know what I was doing half the time. I was going through classes, meeting new people, dealing with my social anxiety. It wasn’t a bad semester considering what was to come, but all the fear and stress were still there. This was the beginning of an important step in my college life. I didn’t know how to deal with stress, but I had recently gotten a sewing kit as a gift. I’d never sewn anything before but had been interested in making stuffed animals. So, on a whim, I took the needle and thread, bought some fabric, put on a YouTube tutorial and sewed. In the end, I created a little stegosaurus that I was very happy with despite it not being perfect. I’d never done anything like that before and it sparked my brain, gave me more inspiration and was a great reset before returning to the studying mindset.
Expressing feelings through art
In one of my creative writing classes this same semester, my professor assigned my peers and I to “do something interesting.” I didn’t know what would count as “interesting”, but I ended up creating a painting using the eraser of a pencil instead of a paintbrush. It was bright and wild and colorful.
Maybe it wasn’t the most amazing thing out there, but it was freeing. It was a little stressful but in a different way than typical homework would be. I was expressing myself and my emotions, painting something I wasn’t sure anyone else would see. It was fun, it was interesting. Throughout the semester, I continued to sketch, draw, and paint, taking a break to relax and create art, which got me through my first year of university.
During a later semester, things weren’t as easy for me. I developed some problems, had new roommate troubles, and wasn’t in a great mental place at the time. During this time, I had something important that was seemingly small, but I grew to appreciate deeply: art and the healing power of art itself. I recently started getting into air-dry clay. I didn’t have the means for oven-bake clay or kiln firing, but air-dry clay was good enough for me, and I started making little animal figures for myself and others. I was the happiest when I was creating.
I was happiest when I was making clay figures or doodling on my desk or in the margins of my notebook. There was joy in the simplicity of it, and in those moments, I didn’t have to worry about the world around me. I was able to take a breather and escape for a little bit, returning more prepared than ever before. I also got some cool art from it and some great gift-giving material.
It was soon that I discovered that every Sunday, the Michael’s craft store nearby NAU’s campus has Makebreaks. I hadn’t found that out until my second or third semester and have been going to them ever since then. I do not attend every single Sunday, but whenever I get the chance to. They run from 2PM to 4PM and you can come and go at any time during those hours. I wouldn’t go at the same time every Sunday, though I would usually try to go as early as I could. They were just simple crafts, but they were something new and different every time. I went with a few friends to the paint pouring and rock painting, but most of the times I would go alone. These were my moments to destress from the semester’s woes and simply make art. I found like-minded people there too—several NAU students who would come to the Makebreak events regularly. One student talked to me a little about how she would come here every Sunday to destress and another group of students would often go there together. I never got to know much about these students but I felt a sense of camaraderie with them for a brief time. We understood each other, bonded through our shared desire to escape school life and make these little crafts. A time that is just arts and crafts, giving room for fun, self-expression and anxiety relief. Things like this become important when it seems like the world is falling apart. My teacher in the semester following the start of my trips to Makebreaks would tell me that art is healing. This resonated with me. It can be any medium of art. Just putting yourself into your work or simply creating something new helps us portray our emotions and to relax. It’s good to take that time for oneself.
To Sum Up
Art is healing, and the healing powers of art are not to be questioned anymore. My professor said it best. I can understand why art therapy would be beneficial. Art is a beautiful thing for self-expression, human connection, processing emotions, and taking breaks. Art isn’t something that should be neglected.
It can help people get through another day more easily. I know it helped get me through these past semesters, whether I realized it at the time or not. I can’t deny that I found it to be more powerful than usual.
I’ve always enjoyed art, but now I can appreciate the effect that making art has on me. I’ve branched out to more mediums, and that’s been wonderful. It’s good to do new things, and with art, the possibilities are endless.
