YOU ARE NOT ALONE - A companion online community discussion board for The Mental Illness Happy Hour podcast with Paul Gilmartin

I've heard a number of people on the board who say that medications take their creativity away. I'm not on meds yet, but I feel like my depression has done that. I know there's a lot of creativity in me and I can be very artistic if the mood strikes me, but if I try to just sit down and draw or write music, I just spout out the same stuff over and over again. Something odd that happens though, is that every once in a while I'll get this urge to draw something and it'll turn out pretty well, but if I try to do it when I don't have that feeling nothing comes out. A good example of this is when my coworker had her baby a month ago or so. They sent out a picture from the hospital and I was struck with the need to draw him. I got this:



When I sit down and draw on my own though, I just sketch the same thing over and over again. Anyone else feel like their depression cripples their creativity?

That's really good! Did you show it to your coworker?
I can honestly say that being depressed definitely affects my creativity negatively. When I'm depressed I don't have any motivation to actually put work into creating something. The act of being creative actually fuels my depression during those times because I feel like I'm wasting my time trying to make something other people will like.
Good works of art come out of the work that goes into them as you negotiate how to communicate your ideas using your craft, not from some pristine idea that springs from the well of your tortured soul. At least that's how I feel about it based on what I do. If my job was singing emo songs to depressed teenagers maybe being happy would be detrimental to my craft. Does anyone feel differently about this?

Thanks Frootsy! I slipped it in the company card we sent with no note attached, and she's staying home for a while so I have yet to hear of her reaction. I wasn't trying to make a big deal out of it though.

I also relate to what you're saying about motivation. That's a big problem for me.