How To Ignite Your Creativity To De-Stress And Design Your Best Life with Morgan Beard
Morgan Beard has dedicated her life to using creativity to heal and empower. Managing depression and anxiety since age 13 made personal development a non-negotiable. She received her BA in Visual and Media Studies from Duke University in 2012 and her MPS in Art Therapy from the School of Visual Arts in New York City in 2017. As an art therapist in New York, she worked in a public elementary school, an adult inpatient psychiatric unit, and a 183-bed nursing home. Her life came to a screeching halt after burning out in pursuit of licensure and entering another major depressive episode.
Focused for the first time on her own happiness, Morgan moved across the country and started over in Los Angeles. She began building her life coaching business, working with individuals to create holistically fulfilling lives and families to increase communication and harmony. This gave her the confidence to embrace her earliest passion for singing and make music to help people move.
This episode is perfect for anybody who wants to learn more about the usage of creativity in healing from mental health struggles such as anxiety and depression, how to begin the process of discovering and connecting with yourself, and how to allow yourself to be creative, have fun, and say yes to yourself more.
In this episode, we discuss:
- How she uses the combination of her personal skills and experience, along with her creative tools as an art therapist to help people deal with stress, feel mastery over their lives and situations, and to gain confidence and self-esteem to thrive and channel their gifts.
- The importance of integrating creativity and expression into transmuting and processing emotions and understanding yourself.
- How to begin using creativity even if you don’t see yourself as being creative.
- Unwinding the mystery of what is happening subconsciously in your body through art.
- Creativity as an amazing vehicle for empowerment and self-discovery.
- How letting go can allow creativity and flow to occur.
- The benefits of becoming aware of tightness and constriction in the relationship with yourself as a first step in allowing things to flow and understanding yourself.
- Letting yourself be with difficult emotions and giving them the space to unfold rather than suppressing them within.
- How the fear of losing control can prevent you from fully experiencing your life.
- Undoing the framework of the importance of the outcome verses the experience of the process.
- How play and creativity are viewed as something exclusively for children, and how adults can benefit from breaking the rules of rigidity and expectations.
- Morgan’s experience reaching burnout and discovering that she was chasing other people’s expectations and desires rather than her own, and her journey to reconnecting with herself.
- Tips for how to create time for yourself and starting the process of restoring the relationship with your own inner compass.
- Suggestions for how to practice creativity and express yourself.
- Learning how to trust yourself and your body.
- The myth of having to do it all on your own and the necessity of seeking out help and support when you need it.
- How to start exploring yourself and your creativity when you struggle with perfectionism.
- How labeling yourself or having a fixed identity can be both helpful and confining at the same time.
- The benefits of bringing mindfulness to unhelpful thoughts and investigating them.
- The importance of recognizing and celebrating your growth and how to do that.
- The benefits of creativity in guiding you to make important life changes and recognizing the difference between fear and desire.
- A guided meditation/visualization tool that Morgan guides at the end of the episode.
Mentioned during the episode:
If you are in crisis or experiencing suicidal ideation, help is available 24/7:
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 1-800-273-8255
Essentialism by Greg McKeown
Connect with Morgan:
Book a free strategy session with Morgan: https://morganbeardcoach.as.me/schedule.php
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Calmly Coping is a self-improvement podcast for overthinkers who struggle with high-functioning anxiety to help you feel more calm, balanced, and confident.
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****TAKE THE FREE HIGH-FUNCTIONING ANXIETY QUIZ ****
***** INTRO/OUTRO MUSIC *****
Rescue Me (Instrumental) by Aussens@iter (c) copyright 2018 Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (3.0) license. http://dig.ccmixter.org/files/tobias_weber/57990 Ft: Copperhead
DISCLAIMER
All content here is for informational purposes only. This content does not replace the professional judgment of your own mental health provider. Please consult a licensed mental health professional for all individual questions and issues.
