,
Everyone’s lifeisa
seriesofhills and
valleys – somehigher
than you expect, and
quitea few deeper than
you ever thoughtcould
happen. Apart from
the obviousthing of
countingyour blessings
andnotyour problems,
asanartist,I’ve
alwaysfoundcomfort
inthe ability to draw
orpaintmy wayout of
the hard times. Some of
theseworks I’vekept,
manyI’ve destroyed,
butthe act of putting
aphysical imageto the
problem seems to help.r ,, bb
Igrew upwitha stutter, andassoonasI
enteredadolescence,the social stress of
aspeech impediment manifested itselfas
anxiety andboutsofdepression.Tostay on
topof mymental health,Iregularly exercise;
socialisewithgoodpeople; sayyestothings
thattakemeout ofmy comfort zone; focus on
biggerworld issuesoutsideofmyown'bubble';
limitdrinkingalcohol toweekendsonly;and
ensure Iget lots of sleep.
r t
art a d itter
My brainis an anxious one.It'sforever
imaginingexactlyhowthepileofthings
that makeup mylife – work,relationships,
houseplants–mighttumbleintoan
unforgivablemess.Afterspendingalotof
time andmoney onallmanneroftherapies
totamethispartofmyself, Ifell deeply
inlovewithproductivityhacksandgoal-
trackingjournals. That'swhenI realised
P&8(7&9.;(4&(- 88.(& '18&>8Qů
"Anxietyisenergywithnoplace to go."The
answeristhereforetofindawaytotapinto
thatenergyandgiveitsomeplace togo!I'm
a bigfanofseriousproject planning, time-
tracking,goal-setting,self-reward-giving,
structuredreflectionand all therestof
that nerdy ‘annual wall calendar’type stuff.
real life