Author: Renee Alexis at Draw Paint Color

Self care for artists is a must.

Like any other working human beings, artists and creatives, too, undergo struggles, slumps, and burnouts. Without a proper work-life balance and going overdrive on your work, you will not only be drained, but you’ll also be less productive and it will take away the joy out of your job.

Being an artist has its challenges. Feelings of self-doubt and being not good enough may resurface once in a while, so you will need to constantly work on yourself to know how to overcome these hurdles.

When you take care of yourself, you allow yourself to be vulnerable. You feel those vulnerabilities, and with knowing how to take care of yourself, you’ll be able to find ways to embrace them and turn them into your strengths. That’s why practicing self-care is imperative because it’s a sure-fire way to not fall under the pressure of being a full-time creative.

As someone who has fallen into several slumps and burnouts in the past, I share with you some self-care tips that I, myself, do. There may be so many more self-care tips out there, but these are what works for me and what helps me get through life. 

7 Self-Care Tips for Artists and Creatives:

1. Hydrate And Eat Well

Reminder to drink water

Water is so important, and I cannot stress this enough. Our bodies are made up of 60% water and neglecting hydration will mean peril. We need to constantly hydrate and rehydrate ourselves because our body needs water to function properly. 

Be mindful of what you put in your mouth because whatever it is you’re eating will affect your overall health. Make sure you eat something healthy so your body can have the energy it needs. Snack on fruits and nuts if you are craving something sweet. You can also have crackers on standby if you don’t want to leave your desk. 

Understandably, there are times when you don’t want to stand up and do anything else aside from making your art, especially when you are in the zone. But it’s important that you don’t go along starving yourself when you are engrossed in your work. Take breaks and fill your tummy with food and water. Always drink water.

Also, limit your intake of junk food. Too much oil, salt, and sugar are not good for your health.

2. Take Care Of Your Physical Health

Self help reminder: exercise, take breaks and sleep well. How to not be tired.

As artists and creatives, we tend to pour our passion into our work, creating nonstop, especially when we are in the zone. We sit, hunch over and get into positions that will, later on, make our bodies ache. Over time, some develop back pain or even carpal tunnel due to the long hours spent working.

One solution for this is to set a schedule for your daily working hours and to have breaks in between to move and stretch out your body. Doing physical exercises every day, even for just a little while, can make a big difference.

Set a time to exercise and sweat out for even just twice a week. I usually do 15 to 30-minute dance exercises I find on Youtube to move my body parts, and I just feel great after a good sweat. There are so many workout videos you can find online to follow so you can exercise peacefully in the comfort of your home.

Lastly, get enough sleep. I couldn’t emphasize this enough, but make sure you are getting enough sleep every day. Whether you are working in the morning or at night, make sure to tailor your sleep schedule to cater to your working hours. Your work outputs will thank you for it because having a well-rested body will yield beautiful creations.

3. Your Mental Health Matters

The world is crazy and sometimes it can take its toll on us. That’s why no matter what, do your best to stay sane and grounded.

Take time to declutter your mind and be at peace with your now. I write in my journal to express my emotions, joys, wants, and deepest fears. Writing can be therapeutic. I usually make lists and “brain dumps” to take things off my mind. This is an excellent way to declutter the mind and organize the thoughts running around your head.

Meditation can also help your mental health. There are a lot of great mobile applications to aid you in meditating, such as Calm and Headspace.

As an introvert, my solace is to always have time for myself to recharge. Listen to your mind and do the things that work for you.

4. Keep Your Workspace Neat And Organized

Your workspace should be an area that inspires you. Whether it’s divinely clean or somewhat cluttered, as long as you feel peace and inspired when you look at it, that’s what’s important.

I keep my tools and art materials on baskets and plastic organizers to keep my desk clutter-free. I’ve also decorated my desk with things that spark joy in my heart.

Sometimes, self-care doesn’t have to be a big thing. As little as making your workspace as friendly and inspiring as possible is self-care, too.

5. Visit Your Vision Board

When I experience an art block, one thing that gives me inspiration again is by looking at my goals – both personal and work-related. It’s good to review your short-term and long-term goals to see how much you’ve progressed and so that you can see if you are on track with what you’ve set for yourself.

Setting goals is one way of getting to know yourself better as you discover what you truly want in life. What’s your plan moving forward? How do you see yourself two years from now? What do you want to achieve in twelve months? What would you like to learn in the next three months?

Do you want to learn a new language? Do you want to master a new medium? What place do you want to see next? What culture do you want to immerse yourself in? List down quantifiable goals that you can look at from time to time to see if you are making progress.

Of course, this is not to pressure you to make your own vision board if you don’t have one yet. It’s more of a suggestion because having some sort of list to look at can get your mind running again and give you the motivation you need to go on.

7 Self care tips for artists and creative people
Save me to your Pinterest board! =)

6. Take Time To Relax And Disconnect

In today’s world, it’s impossible for an artist not to have social media accounts. This means that aside from actually creating art, having an online presence to connect to like-minded people who appreciate our creative output is a normal part of our daily routine.

Take time off from the online world. Disconnect and make time to do other activities unrelated to your creative work. Maybe you have a set of errands to run, some bills to pay, or some house cleaning to do. Schedule a time to organize your adult life so that you can be more productive once you get back to your work.

You can also take a breather and just enjoy a relaxing me-time. Take a long bath, listen to good music, watch that movie you’ve been eyeing, treat yourself to a great meal. Trust me; you deserve it.

7. Foster Your Personal Relationships

Being an artist means you spend the majority of your time alone. Art is often made in solitude and we veer toward isolation to create our best work yet. Just don’t neglect the personal relationships you have.

Make time to socialize and mingle with your friends and family. These relationships will give you further inspiration and motivation to go on. Your loved ones enrich your life and when times get difficult, they’ll be the ones you can run to for support and understanding. That’s why it’s essential to foster the relationships you value.

Reach out to your friends. Hang out with your partner. Spend quality time with your family. Have heart-to-heart talks with your siblings. Play with your niece and nephews. Strengthen the bonds you have with your friends and family. This will give you relief from stress and give you the assurance you need to motivate yourself better.

Bonus: Embrace Imperfections

In creating art, we often are too critical of ourselves and we tend to be our self’s worst enemy. What I always remind myself when my inner critic resurfaces is that art is imperfect. Art is never meant to be about perfection. Art is a mess, and the more you make mistakes, the more you learn from them. Don’t be too hard on yourself. There is always beauty in imperfections.

These are the self-care practices that I do to take care of myself and I hope that you can take away some lessons from me. Some of these tips may need a little getting used to, but you will surely develop your own habits of self-care with effort and time. 

Work is important but so is taking care of ourselves. Don’t neglect yourself because your body is the only one you’ll ever have.