Today (Friday 10th October) is World Mental Health Day 2025. An international day of education and awareness around mental health, and for conversations that help break down any remaining stigma. So, what better opportunity to explore how creativity helps our mental health and wellbeing.
The theme for this year’s World Mental Health Day is ‘access to services – mental health in catastrophes and emergencies’. You might read that and wonder how creativity can play a part in such extreme situations but, the fact is, our mental health and wellbeing are things that need to be looked after on a daily basis – so that we can build resilience for those hard times as well as look after ourselves in day-to-day life… and creativity is one tool that can help.
It’s a topic very close to my own heart, having walked a wobbly path with my mental health since childhood; and being creative For Creatives’ Sake (i.e. for the wellbeing of creatives) is the driving ethos behind our movement. I’ve experienced, firsthand, how creativity can help my own mental health and wellbeing. I find it a great way to escape difficult thoughts for a while, and take a moment to breathe. But let’s get a little glimpse of the big impact creativity can have, from the words of some other creative women…
“Creativity helps my mental health because it allows me to forget everything around me and just focus on whatever I’m working on. It is what’s kept me going through some difficult times in the past, and helps me grow and evolve as a person as well.”
“Creativity grounds me and brings me so much joy, it’s like coming back to myself.”
“When I create with flowers I’m in a complete state of flow. My mind switches off and my hands intrinsically know what to do. It’s definitely my happy space.”
“For me, making time to be creative has become an important part of my routine because of the positive impact it has on my wellbeing. There’s something so calming about the rhythm of stitching that helps me switch off from the noise in my head and just be in the moment – just me, the needle, and the thread.”
“When I became a mum, I felt like I lost sight of who I am as a person. I became ‘mum’ rather than ‘Anna’. Getting creative for the fun of it was so good for my soul, and reminded me of who I am. 11 years later, this is still true: it’s something I do for the joy of it.”
From global instability to the ever increasing costs at home, and from the lasting impact of the pandemic to more and more everyday stress. Whether we experience difficulties ourselves or hear about them through news and social media, there is a lot for our minds to cope with in today’s world. That’s why, perhaps more than ever, it’s important to protect our mental health and wellbeing.
Special thanks to the wonderful women quoted above who kindly shared their insight. Check out our Instagram reel that goes alongside this blog to hear some of their words in their own voices.
And speaking of Instagram… I would love to hear how creativity helps you. If you haven’t already found us on Instagram – why not come say hi, give us a follow, and join the conversation. You can also help spread the FCS movement by liking and sharing our content.
A little sidenote: it’s a personal hope of mine that, one day, we might stop referring to it as ‘mental’ health (as if it’s somehow separate from our physical being) and instead just call it health. But that’s a conversation for another day.
Kerri (FCS founder) x
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