Anxious Art - by Yaddyra Peralta & Elina Diaz (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

Decompress Your Stress

Anxious Art is for readers and doodlers seeking relief from anxiety and stress through meditative, creative processes.

What if we took our stress and used it to create art that brings us peace?

A 2016 study at Drexel university that examined the effects of creative activity on reducing levels of the stress hormone cortisol discovered that "45 minutes of art making...resulted in statistically significant lowering of cortisol levels." We all know cortisol is the stress hormone, so grab a pen or pencil and let the meditations and writing prompts in this mindfulness journal take you on a calming journey to a healthier, happier mind.

T.S. Eliot once said, "Anxiety is the handmaiden of creativity," but if he had this creative journal during times of worry, he surely would have said creativity was the handmaiden to peace. With this friendly, calming companion, you will find that you are much more present in the here and now.

A unique guided journal that will calm and inspire: When used as self-expression, creativity can allow us to take part in what psychologists call "sublimation," or the transformation of negative or socially unacceptable impulses into socially acceptable or even beautiful creations. Anxious Art offers inventive prompts, art projects, and affirmations to inspire artistic activities that distract from feelings of distress and anxiety. As you experience this transformative guided journal, you will work with:

• Lyrical affirmations that build self-confidence and reduce fear
• Therapeutic writing exercises that root you in the present and spark joy
• Doodling that calms your emotions
• Guided breathing exercises that bring you into the present moment

Fans of Wreck This Journal, Tiny Buddha's Worry Journal, or I Am Her Now, will love the calming benefits of Anxious Art.

About the Author

Yaddyra Peralta is a poet and writer whose work has appeared in SWWIM, Miami Rail, Ploughshares, Tigertail, Abe's Penny, Hinchas de Poesia, the Eight Miami Poets anthology (Jai Alai Books) and The Miami Herald. She has taught writing at Miami Dade College, Homestead Correctional Institution, and for O, Miami's Sunroom project. Yaddyra holds an MFA in Creative Writing from Florida International University. A former Assistant Director of the Palm Beach Poetry Festival from 2015-2018, Yaddyra is Associate Editor at Mango Publishing in Miami, Florida