Tag: mental health

HOW CREATIVITY CAN TRANSFORM YOUR MENTAL HEALTH

Posted on February 27, 2025 by communications - Blogs, Stories

HOW CREATIVITY CAN TRANSFORM YOUR MENTAL HEALTH

Engaging in creative activities has been shown to have significant positive effects on mental health and wellbeing. A study published in the Journal of Positive Psychology found that individuals who spent time on creative pursuits experienced increased positive emotions and reduced depressive symptoms. Additionally, research indicates that engaging in creative activities can reduce stress and anxiety, enhance mood and improve overall wellbeing.

At Create, we witness these positive benefits daily and regularly hear from our participants about the impact of taking part in our projects on their mood and wellbeing . We spoke with participants from our young and adult carer projects, inspired:arts and creative:voices, who shared their experiences of taking part.

BALANCING A CARING ROLE WITH OTHER RESPONSIBILITIES

Finding time for oneself while juggling a caregiving role can be challenging. Whether you are an adult or a young person, making space for other responsibilities such as school, work or self-care can be difficult.

inspired:arts is our programme working with young carers, giving them time away from their caring responsibilities to meet new people, build skills and have fun. Aiden (15) took part last year:

“I care for my mum. She has fibromyalgia, which means she has mobility issues; she also has mental health problems. At this stage, doing GCSEs and everything, it’s hard to divide [my] time.”

“It was hard to make time to come [to this project], but I managed to do it. It is challenging, but you find ways to cope.” – aiden

Our creative:voices programme offers adult carers respite and the chance to connect with other carers through the creative arts. Shabana, a participant who cares for her two children, shared:

“I have a 12-year-old daughter who has been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder and she has a physical disability. She requires a lot of physiotherapy day to day. I also have a seven-year-old boy, who has been diagnosed with autism, dyslexia and has sensory processing issues.

Becoming a carer completely [changed my lifestyle]. I lost my friends. I stopped seeing my family because they didn’t really understand what I was going through. My relationship broke down, as it was just too difficult to juggle a relationship and caring. I always came last.”

MAKING TIME FOR NEW YOURSELF THROUGH CREATE’S PROJECTS

Engaging in creativity not only serves as a mindful escape from daily worries, but also offers participants opportunities to create work they are truly proud of.

“I really enjoyed the chance to express creativity. It was good to see our hard work come to life and it actually turned-out way better than we thought it would. I feel very proud.” – Aiden

“it felt nice [to do something creative]. I haven’t done something like that in a while.” – aiden

“Before this [project], I [had] done nothing creative. Last week was the first time I felt confident enough to put my ideas into practice. I saw some blackberries at the bridge mill and I picked them, extracted the dye from them and then used that dye to print some leaves. And it’s because of what we’ve been doing [on the project].” – Shabana

FINDING RELIEF THROUGH CREATIVITY

Due to the pressure that often comes with caring for a vulnerable person, many carers experience poor mental health. Factors such as financial worries and lack of personal time can increase anxiety and other mental health challenges. Studies show that between 40% and 70% of caregivers have clinically significant symptoms of depression, with approximately 25% to 50% of these caregivers meeting the diagnostic criteria for major depression.

“Without creativity, life would be dull. This project made me happier than I would have been. It’s given me something to do and I’ve been hanging around with friends. So, it definitely made me happier over these three days.” – Aiden

“[This project has] been really uplifting for my mood. I suffer with a low mood, but doing the artwork gives me moments where I feel like my mind is creating space.” – Shabana

I ALWAYS COMPARE IT TO A GLASS JAR, AND MINE’S REALLY FULL, OVERFLOWING AND CRACKED. i’VE GOT NO MORE SPACE TO DO ANYTHING. BUT WHEN I COME HERE AND DO IT, IT EMPTIES SOME OF THAT JAR. – Shabana

These personal stories highlight the transformative power of creativity in enhancing mental health and wellbeing, especially for those in caregiving roles.

The inspired:arts project that Aiden attended was funded by Sarah Jane Leigh Charitable Trust. The creative:voices project attended by Shabana was funded by The Smiles Fund, awarding funds from Walkers and Comic Relief.

THE POWER OF CREATIVITY: NICKY GOULDER JOINS THE UNDERSTANDING SOCIETY PODCAST

Posted on February 26, 2025 by communications - News

Create’s Founding Chief Executive, Nicky Goulder MBE, recently joined the Understanding Society podcast to discuss the vital connection between creativity and mental health. In conversation with Dr Karen Mak, a researcher exploring the impact of arts engagement on wellbeing, and host Chris Coates, Nicky highlighted the transformative power of the arts, particularly for those facing isolation or mental health challenges.

Dr Mak shared compelling research demonstrating that engaging in creative activities doesn’t just improve wellbeing, but creates a positive feedback loop where people who take part in the arts feel happier, and happier individuals are more likely to engage in creative activities. This aligns with our mission here at Create, as we regularly see how creativity reduces stress, builds confidence and encourages social connection among its participants.

The discussion also touched on the role of social prescribing, where healthcare professionals refer individuals to creative and community activities to support their mental health. Nicky highlighted how Create’s free, high-quality arts projects offer crucial respite and empowerment for carers, young people with SEND and other marginalised communities.

At the heart of the conversation was a shared belief: everyone should have access to the life-changing benefits of creativity.

Listen to the full conversation and explore the research behind the impact of creativity on mental health.

BUILDING CHARITABLE PARTNERSHIPS EVENT

Posted on February 19, 2025 by communications - News

Earlier this month, Create partnered with Brown-Forman to host an inspiring presentation and networking event focused on Building Charitable Partnerships. The evening brought together corporate partners, charity representatives and like-minded professionals to explore how meaningful collaborations can create lasting social impact.

Held in Brown-Forman’s wonderful space, the event was hosted by Karen Bendell, Create’s Head of Corporate Development & Marketing. Guests enjoyed delicious cocktails and food, generously provided by Brown-Forman, while engaging in thought-provoking discussions about the power of corporate-charity partnerships.

The evening featured insightful talks from Izzy Hardy (Senior Operations Specialist, Brown-Forman); Alice Dias (CEO, Carers’ Hub Lambeth); and Abi (Create Youth Ambassador) in conversation with our CEO, Nicky Goulder MBE. Each shared their unique perspectives on the transformative impact of the creative arts, the role business can play in supporting vulnerable communities, and the role charity can play in enabling companies to meet their Responsible Business objectives. Their words resonated with attendees, sparking dynamic conversations and fresh ideas for collaboration.

As the night drew to a close, one thing was clear – strong partnerships between charities and businesses have the power to change lives. We are deeply grateful to Brown-Forman for hosting this event and to everyone who attended for making it such a success.

We look forward to continuing these conversations and fostering even more impactful collaborations in the future!

If you’re interested in finding out how to partner with Create, you can learn more here!

tHE CREATIVE ARTS and Mental Health

Posted on October 31, 2024 by communications - Blogs

tHE CREATIVE ARTS and Mental Health

At Create, we get to see first-hand how the creative arts enhance individuals’ wellbeing. This was reflected in our 2023/24 social value report: 100% of our participants said that attending Create projects improved their quality of life; and 98% of them reported improved self-esteem.

Our findings reflect recent research from Anglia Ruskin University (ARU) which found that “people who took part in arts and crafts reported higher levels of happiness and life satisfaction, as well as a stronger sense that life is worthwhile.” Moreover, ARU concluded that “helping people to access affordable opportunities for creativity could be a major boost to public mental health.”

This aligns with Create’s mission of enable those who are isolated or marginalised to take part in free high quality creative arts experiences. Below, we hear some of their stories.

FINDING MENTAL AND EMOTIONAL RELIEF THROUGH ART

“Being creative has been really great. It’s been great to express our emotions through body movement and dance. Some days when I have got here, I have felt really emotional. I’m literally holding in tears. And at the end, I feel lighter and better because I’ve moved my body and I’ve been able to come away from my responsibilities and roles at home. I’ve learnt that for me personally, body movement is very important. I used to take dance classes and I really used to enjoy it. But everything stopped and I’ve felt very stagnant. So doing something like this is really important. And I feel more motivated when I’m within a group. I just love the way that movement allows you to release lots of energy from your body as well. It just allows you to move and release that stress in a way. It’s been really nice for my mental health. It certainly helps, 100%” – Nimisha, adult carer, Harrow

“I loved being creative. It took me away physically, mentally and emotionally from my caring role. I’m very tied down by my caring, because I’m a 24/7 carer with just an hour and a half of help each day. But creating things takes us away from ourselves. When you’re involved in creating, you can’t think about how much your feet ache or how your brain is in a fuzz. It’s being able to use my brain and body differently and in a stimulating way.” – Bridget, adult carer, Nottingham

“[These workshops have] been really uplifting for my mood. I suffer with a low mood, but doing the artwork gives me moments where I feel like my mind is creating space. I always compare it to a glass jar, and mine’s really full, overflowing and cracked. I’ve got no more space to do anything. But when I come here and do art, it empties some of that jar. And I can use that empty space to do my caring role.” – Shabana, adult carer, Manchester.

“Being creative felt good because sometimes everything is stressful, especially as I have assessments coming up. It’s been nice to be able to do something else besides that. Creativity has really helped with my mental health, especially doing art with other people. It’s helped me take my mind off of everything and focus on something else for a little while.” – Jack, young carer, Uxbridge

BUILDING LONG-TERM MENTAL HEALTH TOOLS THROUGH THE ARTS

“That’s where this music project has been so important to me because it’s brought creativity back into my life. I have an appointment with it. And my main challenge at the moment is [that] I need to think about myself more. This is a good starting point to enabling me, hopefully, to take some of those further steps that I know I need to do.” – Bridget, adult carer, Nottingham

“I call it my ‘me time’. Because I’m given a chance to come and do what I want to do, and just be free and I’m not being judged. And the fact that it’s creative is good because my creativity has just gotten to spark up. I would recommend it to others as well. I even told my doctor about it and she was really happy I had something to help with my mental health and all the things I’ve got going on at the moment. I really loved the ‘yes, and’ [activity], where somebody says something and you continue with ‘yes, and’. That was both therapeutic and creative for me. It’s actually helped me in my personal life. It has given me a positive outlook by saying ‘yes, and’ instead of going negative and spiralling down. It’s been good in that regard.” – Yvonne, older adult, Islington

“Taking part in this project, I learned that art can be quite relaxing and therapeutic and that it can also help with pain. Obviously, I rely on painkillers, but art can calm your body down, which is quite nice. Projects like these can help people in hospital see a different perspective. We can see the beauty in the very mundane things through art.” Blair, young psychiatric hospital patient, Manchester

HOW CREATIVITY HAS IMPROVED BLAIR’S MENTAL AND PHYSICAL HEALTH

Posted on September 23, 2024 by communications - Stories

HOW CREATIVITY HAS IMPROVED BLAIR’S MENTAL AND PHYSICAL HEALTH

creative:tandem is our multi-artform project with young people admitted to mental health units due to serious conditions including psychotic, depressive, anxiety and eating disorders, self-harm or suicidal thinking. For five days in August 2024, Create artist Sarah Grant delivered visual art workshops at Galaxy House, an inpatient service in Manchester helping young people with a range of conditions including eating disorders, Pervasive Arousal Withdrawal Syndrome (PAWS), OCD and Psychosis.

We spoke to Blair (17) about her experience on this project. Blair was admitted to Galaxy House in May 2024.

Blair’s Story

“I have PAWS, which is Pervasive Arousal Withdrawal Syndrome, classified under FND (Functional Neurological Disorder). I have been in Galaxy House for nearly 18 weeks. I had appendicitis last year and then I was unable to walk and paralysed. We thought I was going to get better, so I was discharged. I had carers, all of that. But then my symptoms just regressed. I had a nasogastric tube and they were looking for external rehabilitation places. Galaxy House fitted my needs, it’s a very specialised facility. My symptoms have definitely improved here and I’ve obtained a much better quality of life.”

THE VISUAL ART WORKSHOP

“We’ve been doing various creative tasks for the week. We did some acrylic painting, art using nature as inspiration, experimental watercolours, clay modelling with terracotta clay, and spray painting. We were free to do whatever inspired us. I liked the free reign given to the young people and how it like dispels the conception that art has to be one specific thing.”

“Working as a group was quite fun. I think it showed the group’s dynamics in a very different way. Art can harness what others are feeling, which can be quite satisfying.”

THE joys of creating

“Being creative has made me feel very fulfilled because I can achieve something tangible, which is not linked to something academic. I think it’s good to have a safe space where you can contribute different creative ideas that don’t have to be intellectually judged.

“[When creating] I feel satisfied as it’s relaxing and very enjoyable.”

“It’s been nice that we had a whole week dedicated to different forms of art.”

TAKEAWAYS

“Projects like these can help people in hospital see a different perspective. We can see the beauty in the very mundane things through art. And it differentiates our days. It’s also nice informal environment. We can interact with nurses more casually, because they’re not writing notes on you.”

creative:tandem is funded by The Prudence Trust

Meet Candida, an occupational therapist at aquarius ward

Posted on February 21, 2023 by nikita - Stories

MEET CANDIDA, AN OCCUPATIONAL THERAPIST AT AQUARIUS WARD

On 14 November 2022, Candida Rosier delivered an insightful presentation to Create’s professional artists and staff, sharing her knowledge and experience of working with young patients in mental health wards.

Candida has been an occupational therapist for more than 40 years. She has spent 15 of them working on Aquarius Ward, an inpatient service for young people experiencing a mental health crisis in South West London. Create has been delivering creative arts projects with Aquarius Ward patients since 2021.

We spoke to Candida about why she thinks running creative arts projects with young patients is important. Read the interview or watch the video below.

“I’ve come here today to help [Create] artists feel confident running workshops on a ward like mine because it can be quite a challenge and it can be quite scary.

“I think everybody is a bit taken aback when they go into a mental health ward. If you work there, it’s complete second nature and we can’t really see what anyone’s scared about, but people are doing surprising things and saying surprising things and there’s quite a lot of shouting some days. If you’re not used to that, it is quite scary as you don’t really know what’s going on.

“So, I wanted [the Create team] to feel like they had the skills and were equipped to come and run workshops. The more knowledge you’ve got, the more it helps your confidence.”

“CREATIVITY IS CRUCIAL TO THE YOUNG PEOPLE ON THE WARD.”

“Quite a lot of young people on our ward can be tense and very unfree about themselves, so by the time the end of the week comes and they’ve been doing the same thing every day, and they’ve got to know the artist, that allows them to let themselves go a little bit.

“Creativity is crucial to the young people on the ward. It’s really important that they realise they can be creative, that they feel confident enough in trying things out, and that they relearn how to have fun. They can do that individually, and they can do it cooperatively with each other, and that helps interaction. It helps so many of their skills, which they can then transfer into other areas of their life.

“You’re not going to get a kid to do anything enormously complicated very confidently in five afternoon workshops, but sometimes you can sow a seed of that idea and they can discover that actually, they do like this and they can take a photo.

“We’ve seen some amazing results of kids whose confidence has grown. A recent music project we had was amazing. We had a young person who was a real challenge, but she was able to sing and record a song to the music we composed and it was wonderful to hear. It makes you think that even though it was difficult, there was an amazing end result. If you ask the majority of kids on Aquarius Ward what their good qualities and skills are when they come in, they always say nothing. So, sowing that seed is really great.

“working with create has been like a breath of fresh air.”

“My experience of working with Create has been entirely positive. It’s been amazing to have this person coming in with lots of skills. As an occupational therapist, it’s quite difficult to find nice quality equipment and nice materials to use, but [Create] come in and it’s all ready-made. They’ve got all the skills and the interest and it’s much easier for them to motivate the kids because they’re so good at doing what they’re doing. So, it’s been amazing, it’s just like a breath of fresh air.”