The Psychology of Creativity and Resilience
How creativity enhances emotional resilience
Earlier this year, I did a silent ten-day retreat.
This involved cutting off all communication in the world and with other participants in the retreat. Every day started at 5 am, and we spent a total of 10–11 hours in meditation per day. That is approximately 100 hours of meditation in ten days.
When you sit with yourself in silence for that long, memories from your past will resurface. Traumatic memories, unhealed wounds.
This happened to me. Childhood memories with harsh interactions that I knew had formed me. Harsh interactions in my childhood that had taught me that I am not allowed to express all my emotionality.
I am an empath. I feel a lot and have deep feelings. But you could never tell this from my facial expression. There is a disconnect between my face and what I feel and how I feel.
Truth be told, I am deeply moved by the suffering of other human beings. I am deeply moved by the joy and emotions of others. I can come into a room and sense what’s going on almost immediately.
However, I grew up in an environment where I was not given a safe space to express my emotions. Hence, my emotional regulation and resilience did not develop in…
