Karen's story
Depression and anxiety have played a role in my life. Sometimes a minor part, sometimes the all powerful lead role. The sparks of creativity in my family run like opal through the rocks of Coober Pedy. Our very close knit extended family network is bonded by our creativity. The colour and joy of painters, musicians, writers, poets and artists alike goes along with the depths of feeling needed to express that creativity.
The familiarity of mental illness has been well accepted and supported throughout. I consider myself to be very lucky! I have grown to be someone who has the resilience to overcome really challenging events. Just as we only get growth through the use of muscles, so do we only learn to use the stress via being exposed to it. And boy, have I been exposed to it!
My favourite quote from William Shakespeare
“Sweet are the uses of adversity,
Which, like the toad, ugly and venomous,
Wears yet a precious jewel in his head;
And this our life, exempt from public haunt,
Finds tongues in trees, books in the running brooks,
Sermons in stones, and good in every thing.”
Those uses of adversity are so important for resilience. Learning about how to use stress as a benefit instead of considering it a terrible consequence of life’s woes has reframed something that I knew to be true. Stress reduction is such an important part of mindfulness, meditation and yoga that are very important in my world, but it’s still an important part of life. Without stress there is no growth in resilience.
The challenges of modern day life and how we view success through doing and achieving goals can be a really difficult thing for someone going through anxiety or depression. I have learned from a variety of different mentors online and offline that we need to take action to gain any kind of momentum. Ready, Fire, Aim. Action before perfection, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. Just do it. They all look at the imperfection of just doing something to get started.
For people who live with depression and anxiety sometimes just getting started can be overwhelming. Speaking from experience, I’ve typed, deleted and retyped this page just a few times! Perfectionism creeps in. It doesn’t make sense. Reword, clarify the idea.
Writing is not my favourite form of expression. Photography, light and shadow, the power of composition to tell the story. The use of colour to convey a feeling. The use of shape and texture to express emotion.
We all take what we want from art. We come to it with all the conditioning that a life brings to it and it lands in a way that makes sense to us.
Practicing mindful photography through paying attention to what we are being drawn to can really help us to understand and express on a subconscious level. It can also allow us to put it out there and not feel so stripped bare due to the nature of interpretation.
I came to mindful photography at a time in my life when a close family member had been dealing with depression that lead to suicide attempts. Picking up my camera if only for a few minutes has given me a reason to get up and go outside into the world and watch it still turning. It has given me the motto “What’s in front of me for the next 10 minutes” Paying attention to the here and now is an important antidote to rumination.
As a big picture person, that can be very challenging, but paying attention to the sky and know that the colour will change is a constant reminder that nothing is forever. The feeling is not forever. The situation will always change like the deciduous trees, they will let go.
Photography can be a very solo experience for some, but for me, I prefer to get out with a group of people and see the world through their eyes. Like minded individuals who love to use the light to create a thing of beauty. Helping them with their camera settings to achieve their vision with my camera as a shield.