Creativity as a Portal to Wellbeing
- Lisa Burchartz
- Mar 17
- 6 min read
On a scale of 1-10, how energized or exhausted do you feel right now?
What makes you feel connected and alive?
How easy or challenging is it for you to access this state of being?
Lately, I’ve noticed myself at a 5 and how exhausting it feels to wade upstream through a river of molasses instead of flowing with the current of life.
Many of us are on high alert and find it difficult to cope with the constant stream of shocking news and the breakdown of established systems. This increased vigilance activates our nervous system's autonomic fight, flight, or freeze response, enabling us to deal with immediate threats (and survive, yay). However, when stressors persist, this evolutionary survival mechanism can become counterproductive, hindering our ability to access compassion, agency, and resources.
As women living in a patriarchal society, many of us learned to navigate the double bind of being powerful by suppressing our natural rhythms and instincts and prioritizing the needs and preferences of others to avoid rocking the boat and stay safe. This is why intentional recovery and repatterning our autonomic responses through somatic mindfulness are essential.
The challenges of midlife & menopause transitions can make it difficult to reconnect with our sense of "aliveness" and the vision we once held for our lives. As a result, we often find ourselves on autopilot, merely surviving instead of thriving.
We impose its unrealistic, manufactured standards on ourselves to meet the demands of a system not created with us in mind. What once seemed attractive and valuable in our 30s and 40s now leaves us feeling disconnected and questioning,
"Is this what I’m supposed to strive for?”
We were meant for more—something that nourishes and inspires us and benefits the intricate web of systems we are a part of.
I remember experiencing a painful mid-life awakening in 2016. After over two decades in corporate leadership, working 60-70 hour weeks directing large-scale HR transformation projects while managing complex caregiving responsibilities at home, I was completely burned out.
The intense pace of those years took a significant toll. I lost time and experiences that I could never regain, and the sense of fulfillment I usually felt after achieving important goals was missing. Instead, there were feelings of anger, resentment, numbness, physical symptoms, and exhaustion. I began to question everything. Deep down, I realized that if I didn't take steps toward change, the part that yearned for a more expansive, creative, and connected life would wither away.
"Pain pushes until the vision pulls."
- Michael Beckwith
It was time to break the cycle of settling for crumbs and overfunctioning in a system perpetuating burnout culture.
It was time to align more closely with my purpose, strengths, and values of freedom, the pursuit of wisdom, authentic expression, courage, and compassion.
The world needs the best of our feminine power and
creativity to ignite change and restore balance as we
face real challenges to our hard-won rights and freedoms.
So, where do we begin? We follow our energetic breadcrumbs and say yes to what restores our sense of aliveness.
When the path is unclear, allow creativity to guide you back to yourself.
I want to share a recent experience that shifted me from a 5 to a 10, turning stagnation into curiosity and inspired action. It all began with an invitation from a friend to create art together.
My friend is a full-time professor of Women’s Studies, a health researcher, and a mother of two young children. Despite her busy schedule, she prioritizes time for hobbies, contributing to her mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual well-being. She is my role model, demonstrating how saying "yes" to the universal need for authentic expression enhances performance and problem-solving.
As someone who gets caught in patterns of perfectionism (often called analysis paralysis), I was aware of an internalized belief that everything I did needed to be productive and meaningful. If it wasn’t, I felt an undercurrent suggesting it was frivolous, wasteful, and unacceptable.
To break free from my constraints, I enrolled in a four-week art course at the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO), inspired by the vibrant works of Philippine-born artist Pacita Abad. Initially, the experience made me anxious, as it triggered my inner perfectionist and fear of inadequacy, stemming from unfavorable comparisons to my award-winning younger siblings throughout my childhood and early adulthood. Even without external criticism, I judged myself harshly and would only embark on new projects if I believed I could achieve excellence.
However, creating art with my friend made it feel safe to be messy and experiment. Although there were times when other obligations tempted us to skip class, we upheld our commitment to the process and each other. We had a fabulous time getting our hands dirty and engaging our five senses with different mediums, textures, scents and colors, allowing our imaginations to flow freely.
I loved printmaking using Gelli pads and combining hand-printed papers into final pieces. As I created, a wave of satisfaction washed over me, erasing the harsh self-judgment that often accompanied my artistic attempts. It was liberating to focus on creating something that was simply "good enough." Our works became perfectly imperfect creations—art made purely for the joy of it.
This experience didn’t just reignite my aliveness; it sparked a broader shift in my outlook. I became more open to trying new things without the weight of perfectionism holding me back. It reminded me that exploration and joy are just as valuable as productivity in my journey of personal growth.
It’s hard to believe nine years have passed since I left my corner office and embossed business card to pursue a purpose-fuelled career as a Trauma-Informed Somatic Mindfulness Coach, Adler-trained Executive Coach, and Somatic Stress Release Practitioner focusing on self-reinvention, nervous system empowerment, and burnout recovery.
I’m noticing how the transition through menopause invites me to move beyond the socially constructed identities and limitations I’ve held. This period encourages us to know ourselves more intimately, to become curious about our evolving legacy, and to clarify our core values, strengths, and callings. It allows us to shed accumulated expectations (and energy stored in the body) while expressing the unsung song within us that longs to be known and heard.
Marion Woodman puts it beautifully :
“In our yearning to be perfect, we have mistaken perfection for wholeness. We think we cannot love ourselves until we and others meet some external standard. Depression and anxiety - in fact, most neuroses and compulsions - are ultimately a defence against loving ourselves without condition.
We are afraid to look at the damp, dark, ugly yet exquisite roots of being that stretch deep into our survival chakra. We are fearful of finding that the spirit is not there, that our Home is empty, even as our outer home is empty. Yet it is in that place of survival, where the dark mother has been abandoned, that spirit longs to be embodied so that the whole body may become light.”
A Somatic Practice for Self Reconnection:
We can increase our capacity to create change and ignite hope, optimism and joy regardless of external challenges.
Go outside for a few minutes—or stand by a window if it’s too cold.
What colors do you see?
What do you feel under your feet—grass? Cement? A wooden deck?
What is moving? What is still?
What do you perceive as beautiful?
Inhale deeply; notice scents or aromas in the air.
Feel your feet firmly on the ground and notice if there is an impulse to hum, move, shake, or dance.
Whatever arises, notice if you can allow it to be expressed.
Reflections for Growth
The greatest gift we can give ourselves is cultivating a rich inner knowing that trusts our intuition and recognizes creative rest as a vital component of physical and psychological well-being.
What barriers stand in the way of your ability to rest, create and express yourself fully?
What have you missed because you were too exhausted to care?
Is the motivation that drove you before still influencing you now?
What can you let go of to create space for rest and a fulfilling life?
What narrative are you crafting about yourself?
What more liberating story can you embrace?
