Learn how to use your creative skills to manage intense emotions and develop a self-care practice to promote mental health.

Hello! I'm Agnes de Bezenac, an artist and author from France.

In this course I’d like to share with you a few of my self-care routines and habits, expressed through creativity and art, as I mix them together in some mindful, meaningful way to create beautiful and artsy and craft pages.

Self-care is such a broad topic, so I find it helpful to separate them into different categories (that you'll be able to find in some of my other courses here), to be able to practice new little routines and habits in each area, and at my own pace. 

Specific topics covered in this course:

• Emotional self-care (37 min)
•  Mental self-care   (53 min)
• Spiritual self-care (51 min)

What you will learn in this course, related to creating these craft pages:

• Benefits of combining art and creativity with self-care
• Find inspiration for choosing your pictures
• Notice on what is personal and right for you
• Create cut-out letter titles
• Include lots of space for journal prompts
• Add beautiful final touches
• Questions for personal reflection time
• Examples of activities, habits or rituals related to emotional, mental and spiritual self-care
• How to grow and practice in your self-care
• Learn to question yourself, for your emotional well-being
• How to use and refer back to these pages

Bringing my love for creativity and at the same time growing in self-care has been such a satisfying experience in my life, and it’s even been a wonderful bonding experience to do together with my teen daughter, a time to connect, to reflect and improve our communication skills as well as encourage and motivate us towards progress. (see more on this later.)

It also helps to clarify sometimes vague concepts into pictures. And we both end up with an amazing mindfulness toolkit to help us for days to come.

There is so much to all this emotional self-care that it can be a bit overwhelming, but creating a page for each topic that we want to focus on, has made it a joyful experience, doable and possible for us to attain in tiny baby steps towards building good and long-lasting habits, that benefit us, our health and well-being.

I also find that art is that special place where I can connect with myself, and letting it be a gentle reminder of what I can do for my well-being, through some picture or art piece, or as a way to express what I don’t know how to put into words, thus the reason behind these craft pages.

I’m inviting you today to follow along and personalize your creative expressions in accordance with your own feelings and what you know your heart needs.

I’m looking forward to exploring this artistic journey together as we grow in our emotional self-care.

Materials needed:

• craft book
• white paper
• letter cut-outs
• lined paper
• cut out magazines
• craft decors (if you want)
• stickers (if you want)
• glue
• scissors
• paper fastener
• black pen or marker
• white gel pen
• tape
• cutter and metal ruler
• attached print-outs (if you want)

Some more benefits to using art and a creative project like this for our self-care:

• For me, art and creativity makes me happy. It's my joy and passion. I get a sort of high from it.
• It uses that side of the brain that is more attuned and sensitive.
• I’m paying attention to my physical needs and my emotional needs at the same time
• I use my creativity to facilitate soul searching and bring to light unconscious thoughts.
• Any sort of art form allows me to express what I have a difficult time putting into words.
• It works as a memory builder. Whatever I take time to do and create, it has a greater effect and meaning for me.
• Becomes like a concrete manifestation of my imagination and thoughts. Subconsciously works towards my good.
• I have a beautiful work of art that I feel proud of and can refer back to it as often as I need.
• Helps grow my confidence as I see all what I'm doing to better my self care.
• Encourages me to take time for me with no other distractions. I can't very well multitask at the same time. It’s concentrated “me” time.
• It helps me realize that I’m important, I’m of value and I deserve this time.
• I’m able to reflect and ask myself about so many questions that I never took the time for before.
• I feel I’m learning more about myself as I do these pages.
• I realize that creative is not so much about the end result but about the listening during the process.
• It feels like play, but at the same time I’m equipping myself with an amazing gift, not just for now but to use and be reminded of for as long as I need it.
• When I feel a low of inspiration, when I need a little pause to reflect, when I feel like I could use a boost of joy, peace or calm, I go to my craft book. I open a random page and I reflect and focus on it.
• The more detail, the more sensory play, the more I love it and the more it helps me connect within.
• It brings up memories of how I made it past a stressful situation or difficult moment and it just suddenly builds me up in confidence and courage for what I’m going through today.
• I feel proud and satisfied with beautiful creative artsy work.
• I allow it to bring me so much depth and wisdom as I relate it to my situation now.
• I can continue to add little notes to personalize it to what I'm going through right now, today.
• There's room for evolving with how I'm changing and growing and what I need at the moment.
• What I love most about these craft pages is that I have a way to connect with my teen daughter.
• This is an outlet that we both can enjoy and have fun with together as we grow and progress in our self-care.
• It’s a wonderful, meaningful experience you can share simultaneously.
• You’re equipping her with a self-care tool kit she can continue to use for life.
• An outlet for the pains, fears, humiliations, challenges, or disappointments.
• It helps us to check within, for the strength, wisdom, grace and joy to journey on.