Creativity - The Unseen Healer:

How Creativity Rewires the Brain for Trauma and Chronic Pain

Living with trauma or chronic pain can feel like being trapped in a house where all the alarms are blaring, all the time. With CRPS, the house is also on fire. The nervous system is on high alert, the body is a landscape of discomfort, and the mind is stuck in a relentless loop of past events and present suffering. It's exhausting. We're often told to talk it out, to medicate, to rest. What if that isn’t enough. What if one of the most powerful tools for healing wasn't in a pill bottle, but in a paintbrush, a pen, or a lump of clay?

Enter the unlikely superhero: Creativity.

It’s not about becoming the next Picasso. It's about the process of engaging in the act of creation as a radical form of self-care and neural reprogramming. It’s about finding something positive and engaging that distracts you from the pain and calms your central nervous system. Let's explore how creativity’s powerful force can become an essential ally on the journey to healing. Learn how I use it as an essential tool and outlet for managing my chronic pain. 

The Vicious Cycle: When Trauma and Pain Inhabit the Body

First, it's crucial to understand the deep connection between trauma, PTSD, and chronic pain. Trauma isn't just a memory; it's a physiological event that gets stored in the body. In addition to both accidents I was in (March/2008 and February/2009), the following 8 years were full of one traumatic and blindingly painful medical procedure after another. All that pain, fear and stress I had to endure at each appointment have left permanent marks on my brain. When I’m having a flashback, I can see and feel the searing pain happening to me as I sobbed ugly cried for them to stop. I remember those events now, as if I were actually experiencing it. Each one added to my already overwhelmed brain that was just soaking up the trauma and pain and I was being put through. On top of that, just the mere act of walking causes drastic and shocking pain fluctuations. I have a surge of burning and prickly electrical shocks that shoot up my legs when they are weight bearing. These can be startling and because they spike my pain sharply, it means I’m always on high alert and preparing myself for a spike in pain. Every step I take reminds me of my trauma and reminds me of what I’ve lost, and I have to work really hard to not let that ruin my days. They are sometimes so painful and traumatic that feeling that pain itself  further traumatizes you. It took me a long time to figure this out. When events like these happen, the brain's fear center, the amygdala, can become overactive, keeping the body in a constant state of fight-or-flight. It’s like your brain thinks you are in constant danger. This locks the sympathetic nervous system into overdrive, flooding the body with stress hormones like cortisol (C21​H30​O5​) and adrenaline, which further fuels the effects of one’s trauma. 

This sustained state of high alert can lead to very real physical symptoms: muscle tension, inflammation, and a heightened sensitivity to pain signals. When I’m sitting at my desk, I bend my toes and feet and clench my muscles while grinding my foot into the ground. For many, trauma is the root cause of their chronic pain. For others, the constant stress of living with pain can itself be traumatizing. It's a feedback loop where the mind and body keep each other hostage. This is a really exhausting way to live. I know first hand. As I said above, I have severe medical and physical trauma PTSD from countless painful medical tests and procedures, as well as the the trauma from the harsh nature of CRPS, and I can tell you from experience, when you are suffering from the effects of ongoing trauma from chronic pain, it makes it very hard to process and work through any of your traumas. It’s neverending and you don’t get any real closure. It’s like my experience with grief and chronic pain. Whenever I can’t do something anymore, if the task or activity becomes harder, or my pain gets worse/having a flare, a grief cycle starts up again and I usually experience a depressive episode. It’s a never ending cycle for me, and countless others who suffer with chronic pain. It causes many pain warriors to also suffer with a decline in their physical and mental health as the painful years pass. Grief doesn't really ever go away for most Pain Warriors, because your pain and limitations are always changing, usually decreasing, and that makes it really hard to heal those emotional wounds or find any closure. 

Why is Creativity Such a Potent Asset?

When you're stuck in this loop, words can fail. Trauma can impact the brain's language centre (Broca's area), making it literally difficult to articulate what happened and what is going on around you. It takes longer to process and formulate what you are hearing or seeing and what you want to say in response. I have trouble with this as I’m always forgetting what the other person just said, or what I’m saying, and what I'm watching TV or reading, etc I don’t remember everything that is going on. and it makes it difficult to converse, retain information, follow a book or something on TV. This is where creativity steps in as a new language. I thrive on creativity, and I don’t think I’d be here today, or doing as “well”, if I didn’t have any of my creative outlets. In times of overwhelm, they ground and center me. They comfort me. They distract me and keep me from going crazy. Living with chronic pain is like navigating a difficult maze blindfolded, with no exit, yet you still need to find your way out. 

1. It Bypasses the Need for Words: Art, music, dance, and writing provide a non-verbal outlet. You can express rage through jagged lines in a sketch, sorrow through a minor chord on a piano, or chaos through an abstract collage. It allows the trapped emotions to be seen, heard, and released without having to find the "right" words. When I’m doing a creative activity, my mind goes somewhere calm and I don’t have to think about anything stressful or upsetting. I just have to think about what I’m creating. What my next paint or pen stroke is going to be, and nothing else. One of my favourite activities to do is to listen to meditations in my Apple Fitness+ or Balance apps, while colouring or drawing, or doing a craft. It’s very peaceful for me. Balance even has meditations specific to chronic pain, and I find them really nice to listen to.
   
   
2. It Reclaims a Sense of Control: Trauma and chronic pain strip away your sense of agency. You feel powerless over your own body and mind. The simple act of making a choice—selecting a color, writing a sentence, shaping a piece of pottery—is a profound act of rebellion. You are exerting control over a small piece of your world, creating something new and whole from a place of feeling broken. This is especially true if your chronic pain is not managed as well as it could be or is extremely physically limiting. When I participate in acts of creativity, I find those acts to be freeing and comforting, and almost always helps me process and get through whatever it is I need to work through at that moment.
   
   
3. It Provides a Productive Escape: Chronic pain is a relentless attention-seeker. Creativity offers a compelling and healthy distraction. It’s not just numbing out in front of a screen; it's an active, engaging process that demands your focus, pulling your attention away from the pain signals and onto the task at hand. My chronic pain is always screaming at me, and when I’m busy creating, those screams are dampened and are not so overwhelming.
   
   

The Creative Brain on Healing: What's Happening Upstairs?

This isn't just about "feeling good." Engaging in creative acts physically changes your brain.

• Entering the "Flow State": You know that feeling of being completely absorbed in an activity, where time seems to disappear? That’s called a "flow state." Neurologically, this state is fascinating. It tends to decrease activity in the prefrontal cortex—the part of your brain that houses your loud, nagging inner critic. It also calms the amygdala, quieting the brain's alarm system. When I’m in a deep flow state, I swear the house could burn down around me and I wouldn’t notice. I’m so focused on the task at hand, that my brain blocks everything else out and I’m not really aware of what’s going on around me.
  
  
• Dopamine on Demand: The act of creation, and the satisfaction of seeing a project take shape, releases dopamine. This neurotransmitter is associated with pleasure, reward, and motivation. It’s a natural mood booster that can counteract the anxiety and depression that so often accompany chronic pain and PTSD. I can get pretty excited about my creative projects, and that excitement is inspiring and motivating in other areas of my life.
  
  
• Interrupting the Pain Loop: The brain can get stuck in neural pathways, like a well-worn groove. In chronic pain, the "pain pathway" is constantly firing. When you engage in a creative activity, you're forging new neural pathways. You're giving your brain an alternative route to take. This concept, known as neuroplasticity, is the brain's incredible ability to reorganize itself. Creativity is, quite literally, an exercise in rewiring your brain.
  
  
• Dampening the Default Mode Network (DMN): The DMN is active when our minds are wandering or ruminating—a state where those with trauma and depression often get stuck in negative self-talk and memories. The intense focus of a flow state actively suppresses the DMN, giving you a much-needed break from the cycle of rumination. This is especially important because things like negative self-talk and focusing on the negative, can actually amplify and increase your pain. Doing activities that decrease that negativity can actually decrease the pain you feel.
  
  

The Tangible Benefits for Chronic Pain and Trauma

So, what does this all add up to?

• Reduced Perception of Pain: By shifting focus and releasing natural endorphins (the body's own painkillers), creative acts can genuinely lessen the intensity of pain. Not only are you not focused on it as much, but your body is not feeling as stressed and that stress reduction can also reduce your pain levels. 
• Emotional Regulation: It provides a safe container to process overwhelming emotions, reducing outbursts and feelings of being emotionally flooded. While I don’t generally have outbursts, I do feel emotionally flooded on a regular basis. Having pain that never stops can make you emotional. Some days I cry, others I feel just depleted. When I’m doing something creative, my mind perks up, the ideas start flowing, and I start to get excited about what I’m creating. 
• Improved Mood and Reduced Anxiety: The dopamine boost and calming of the amygdala work together to lift spirits and soothe the nervous system. When I’m focused on creating something artsy, or writing a blog post or in my journals, my mind is not racing with anxious or negative thoughts. When I'm consistent with my creativity or writing, I find my overall mood improves, and my anxiety, depression and PTSD symptoms impact me less. It is emotionally freeing when that happens.
• A Renewed Sense of Identity: You begin to see yourself as more than just your diagnosis. You are a writer, a painter, a gardener, a musician. This shift in identity is incredibly empowering. When I moved to Galiano Island, and started selling my art and cards at our local Saturday Market, and taking on small graphic design jobs, I was finally able to call myself an artist. Now I can add blogger and author to that list. 
• Increased Mindfulness: Creativity grounds you in the present moment—the texture of the paint, the sound of the note, the feeling of the pen on paper—pulling you out of past trauma and future worries. I LOVE the feel of how a pen glides on the paper, and different pens glide differently. When I’m drawing, I’m focused on each pen stroke, immersing myself with how that pen feels as it leaves its mark on the paper, and the same goes for when I’m writing in my journals. I get really into it, that flow state, and it has made a profound difference in my mental health. 

Your Creative Toolkit: It's Simpler Than You Think

The goal is process, not product. Forget the idea of being a "good artist." The only thing that matters is that you do it. Here are some accessible ways to start, even on low-energy days:

• Mindful Doodling: All you need is a pen and paper. Draw shapes, lines, or patterns without a goal. Notice how the pen feels in your hand. In 2015 I found Zentangle, which is a meditative form of artwork where you draw repetitive patterns in different areas of your paper. In doing those repetitions, your mind finds its way to a mindful peacefulness with each pen stroke. Zentangle changed my life and is what got me into finding activities that bring about that meditative state I find myself in when I’m drawing or focused on something else creative. 
• "Stream of Consciousness" Journaling: Open a notebook and write whatever comes to mind for 5 minutes without stopping or censoring yourself. Let it be messy. This is particularly helpful for me because I find that sometimes just by writing it down, that I sort of release that energy and am able to move on from being stuck in a negative thought pattern.
• Create a Playlist: Curate a "soundtrack" for your mood. What songs feel calming? What songs feel energizing? What songs help you process grief? I have Apple Music and my playlist is called “Mere is Cool” lol. I have all sorts of songs in that playlist that speak to me, and any number of moods I find myself in. Sometimes I find myself lost in a song, and the positive energy that the song emits can snap me out of these negative thought pattern loops I find myself in. 
• Collage Making: Cut out images, words, and colors from old magazines that speak to you. Arrange them in a way that feels right. It's a low-pressure way to create something visually expressive. My mother-in-law and I make cards. I call them “Collage Cards” because we find little bits and bobs to glue to the card, like charms, ribbon, natural and store bought embellishments, and things I find on my travels around the island that we can use. The Christmas ones we do are stunning and original and they are popular and sell well here locally. 
• Nature Craft: Go outside, even if it's just to your doorstep. Arrange a few fallen leaves, stones, or flowers into a pattern. Take a picture of something you find beautiful. I’m trying to do more of this. We live on 11.5 acres and there is so much on our property that can be used for creating beautiful pieces of art and I really enjoy the process of finding that perfect branch or pinecone, Lichen or moss, and turning it into something beautiful and meaningful. 
• Fiber Arts: The repetitive, rhythmic nature of knitting, crocheting, cross-stitching or weaving can be incredibly meditative and calming for the nervous system. I used to crochet, a lot, but unfortunately with my back and neck I cannot do it anymore. I loved crocheting and for a while I sold what I made. I also enjoy cross stitch and embroidery, and want to learn how to weave. My mom has her tabletop weaving loom from the 1970’s and one day I want to set it up here and learn how to weave. 

Creativity, therefore, isn't merely a hobby; it's a profound therapeutic intervention. By engaging in these diverse creative practices, individuals with trauma and chronic pain can actively participate in their own healing. It's about empowering oneself to speak without words, to build a new self from a place of feeling shattered, and to constantly remind the brain and body that their narrative extends far beyond the confines of pain and suffering. This journey, while challenging, is made more manageable and meaningful when accompanied by the deeply human act of creation.

So while creativity is not a magic cure, it is a powerful and deeply human companion on the difficult path of healing. It offers a way to speak when you have no words, a way to build when you feel broken, and a way to remind your brain and body that there is more to your story than pain.

What creative practice has brought you a moment of peace? I'd love to hear about it in the comments below.

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