art
Artistic, musical, creative, and entertaining topics in Longevity's health and wellness sphere.
Lots of Knots
Although I've always loved to get down on any sort of craft session, I recently took up the art of macramé (hippie power) as a way to deal with my trichotillomania. For those who don’t know, "trich" is a body focused repetitive behavior (BFRB) which means that I pull out my hair when I'm stressed or anxious. It’s actually very common and is akin to skin picking and nail biting. If you pay close attention, I'd be willing to bet that someone you personally know deals with this disorder in some way. It's pretty hard for a lot of us to talk about it because we are usually riddled with shame or embarrassment. But really, aren't we all embarrassed about something? I know it took me years before I was able to openly share my struggles with anyone.
By Kali Hodges5 years ago in Longevity
A new creative outlet
I have multiple hobbies in my life. Reading, of course as a library supervisor, books and reading are very important. I adopted my first dog at age 19 and began training her so dog training became part of my life. I learned to sew from my Mom and in college sewed all of my own clothes. My Dad taught me woodworking and one year I made my Mom a corner curio cabinet for Christmas. I came to drawing and painting when I was in my late 20s. I loved the idea of creating beautiful pictures. I started with simple graphite pencil and moved to colored pencil and then watercolor pencil drawings. Since I love dogs often my creations are of my dogs, or my friends' dogs. I expanded to flowers and I have even tried my hand at people and did a portrait of a friend's child.
By Marcy Graybill5 years ago in Longevity
Art is my Therapy
When the paint brush is in my right hand, moving down for a stroke of paint off my wooden palette, with a blank canvas in front of me is where I feel I most belong. Art is my therapy, it brings my mind to ease, and fills my heart with joy. I love to express my feelings through my artwork and to draw about things that are important to me. Art challenges me to access the deepest roots of my creativity. I enjoy adding lots of bright colors to make the artwork really pop and mix matching light and dark shades for contrast. I love to see the smiles on my friends and family’s faces when I gift them with artwork. Art is something so meaningful, I leave parts of myself in every piece that I create, it is the perfect gift.
By Vanessa Marin5 years ago in Longevity
Showcasing the Artistic Talent of Jess Girardo
Jess Girardo asked me to hold her in the Light tonight. I’m not terribly great at that kind of thing. I can meditate, but I am more of an activist, a motivator of sorts. I believe in the whole "move a muscle, change a thought" philosophy. Jess Girardo embodies this fully, even with the limitations of her body due to Scleroderma, a degenerative disorder involving the hardening of the connective tissue, resulting in a hardening of the skin. This has necessitated multiple surgeries for Jess, with no let up in sight. She has a team of 20 doctors, and speaks often of her progress and obstacles on Twitter, where I made her acquaintance.
By Diane Bancroft5 years ago in Longevity
Photography and Design Made Me Whole Again
In the summer of 2003, I was between Junior and Senior year of Highschool. Things were great! We had just gotten back from a family vacation and I was celebrating a friend being in remission from Leukemia. I was getting ready to begin my senior year and was looking forward to it!
By Suzanna Bunch7 years ago in Longevity
My Brain: "The Risk Taker"
I’ve always had these problems with sticking with one idea. My mind will jump from one to the next trying to wrap itself around a fleeting wisp of smoke in a hazy room. They’re so compacted in my head that, when one slips out, I have to grab it then body slam it to the floor to daze it. I need to stick with that idea, or it will never be finished. I can never decide what I want to write about. Do I want to talk about how I always seem to procrastinate writing essays? Or how I used to write stories during math class in elementary school?
By Amber Lehmann7 years ago in Longevity
The Power of Art as a Self-Healing Technique
Art; a totally unique process where you can immerse yourself into a creative and relaxing state, and express your thoughts and emotions in a visual way. Engaging in creating a piece of artwork (of any kind) fosters a sense of harmony and accomplishment, and is a healthy way of diverting all negative energies and emotions into something positive, creative, and therapeutic. In addition, what is produced at the end will be an original and unique piece created by you.
By Flower Violet7 years ago in Longevity
First Things First
If there’s one thing I’ve learned from having anxiety and depression, it’s that life…well, life isn’t always beautiful. There will always be struggles. Some days I can hardly get out of bed. Sometimes the only thing I want is to be held by one specific person, and absolutely nothing else. I can’t remember what day of the week it is, or what dream I had last night, but I know it was bad.
By Baylee Ence9 years ago in Longevity
Evolution of American Martial Arts Training
Throughout the martial arts community, it seems that there has been a slow dissipation in the role of traditional values, in many cases, there has even been total abandonment-a disturbing observation. However, given that values are not the motivating factor for most enrollees and that most people, in fact, enroll into martial arts to become stronger, tougher, faster, and meaner (the exact reverse of the teachings), many schools have conformed to those demands in order to survive. Although to some extent, we have to appease the students in order to keep their interest, does that require desertion of the traditional aspects? After all, we have to pay our bills, and the instructors must make a living.
By Mackenzie Lu9 years ago in Longevity
