You Are Creator

When you hear “creativity,” you probably think of artists. Painters, musicians, writers, people who make things for a living.

But creativity isn’t reserved for people with a specific skill set. You’re creating every single day. Solutions to problems. Plans that didn’t exist before you thought of them. The way you rearrange your schedule to make something work. That text message you wrote three different ways before sending. Taking inspired action on an idea that showed up out of nowhere.

All of that is the act of creativity.

We’re all creators. Waiting for a way to fully express ourselves. To stop editing before we even begin. To make something just because we want to.

Creativity isn’t a skill you either have or don’t have. It’s a state. A way of being present with yourself and what wants to come through you.

Consumption vs. Expression

We live in a world that encourages us to consume creativity and not necessarily engage with it ourselves.

We’ll be on social media for hours joking about how we “doom scrolled until 2am last night”. We watch other people create. We consume their art, their music, their videos, their ideas. Somewhere along the way we forget that we’re supposed to be making things too.

Not for an audience. Not to be masterful at it. But because expression is how we process being alive.

The stuckness you feel? The freeze response that keeps you locked in place? Expression is the way out. We have to find a way to give our emotions an outlet. A way for them to move through our bodies, to be fully felt and expressed, so they don’t just sit inside us creating more stuckness.

Creativity is one of those tools.

And it can look different for everyone. Some people paint. Some color. Some write. Some dance. Some take photos. Some cook. Experimentation is needed to find an outlet that resonates the most with you. Some people are creative in all the ways and select what they need on the day.

What matters is that you’re creating something instead of just consuming.

That you’re letting what’s inside you come out in some form. Because that’s how energy moves. That’s how emotions (energy in motion) complete their cycle instead of getting stuck.

Permission to Play

Creating for creativity’s sake means giving yourself permission to play.

And play, for adults, feels ridiculous at first. We’ve been conditioned to be productive. To have a reason. To justify why we’re spending time on something that doesn’t have an obvious outcome.

But think about children. They aren’t creating for productivity’s sake. They don’t let their imagination run wild because they deem it “worth their time”.

They create because it’s fun.

Because they want to see what happens when they mix all the colors together. Because they’re fully in the present moment with themselves without worrying about whether it’s “good.”

That’s the part of ourselves that we reconnect with when we create. Not the polished, performative version of creativity. The messy, experimental, “I have no idea where this is going but I’m having fun” version.

You might make something and laugh at yourself while you’re doing it. You might try something that feels silly or embarrassing. You might create something that never sees the light of day because it was just for you, just for the process.

Some things get made. Some things get sent. And that’s exactly how it should be.

The point isn’t the product. The point is that you’re in flow state. Whole-heartedly present with yourself, allowing whatever needs to be embodied or felt to move through you the way it’s meant to.

The Fear of Letting Go

Something can happen when you start creating: fear shows up.

Fear of allowing instead of forcing. Allowing means not having control or certainty about what you’re making or how you’re making it. Letting yourself be fully present without pressure or expectations placed on the result.

This is where perfectionism can creep in. “Is this good enough? Should I plan this more? Maybe I need to think about it longer before I actually do it.”

That’s stopping before you begin. Play and fun turn into rigidity and practicality. The part of you that wants to control the outcome instead of letting the process unfold.

Creating asks you to allow. To let whatever wants to come through, come through. And that lack of control? That can be terrifying.

Creating for Yourself

The way through is by doing it anyway.

Not for an audience. Not to be good at it. But for yourself.

To give yourself a form of expression. An outlet to make sense of things that otherwise don’t make sense. There are some human experiences you can’t think your way out of. Sometimes you have to create your way through them.

You learn that this is what it means to show up for yourself. To sit in the discomfort and allow yourself to move through it to the other side. Usually resulting in relief and clarity. A stronger sense of self.

Showing Up for Yourself

And then: you keep going.

It probably wasn’t perfect. You won’t suddenly feel confident. But showing up for yourself consistently is how you rebuild self-trust. It’s how you express self-love.

Every time you show up to create, you’re nurturing the relationship with yourself. You’re proving to yourself that at the end of the day, you will be there for you. That you’ll stay and show up even when it’s uncomfortable.

What Creating Can Teach You

The ability to create with intention is a gift.

It’s space to experiment without pressure. Room to figure out what resonates without the weight of an audience watching.

And the joy? The joy isn’t in being validated. It’s in the act of creation itself.

You start to understand that some things are just meant to be made for your eyes only. Purely for the process of alchemizing your emotions and understanding yourself more. It’s valuable to let what’s inside you move through you and be expressed outwardly.

That’s abundance. That’s creative freedom.

Creation as a Regulation Tool

The creative process itself brings you back to center.

It’s not linear. It’s cyclical. You might spiral, question everything, feel like it’s pointless. Then you start making the next thing and you remember. You feel. You express. You are.

Creating, especially with intention, is regulation in real time. This flow state allows emotions to complete their cycle instead of staying stuck.

The creative process is the tool.

Integration & Embodiment

Every time you choose to create, to play, to express, to allow something to move through you, you’re reconnecting with the part of yourself that knows how to be present. How to process. How to heal.

​​Learn to slow down and pause.

Take a moment.

Respira.

Always remember: Si no sana hoy, sanará mañana.

(If it doesn’t heal today, it will heal tomorrow.)

Con amor,
Hanna

P.S. While I’m a Licensed Professional Counselor, this space isn’t professional advice or therapy. This is me sharing my personal journey, my mess, my learning. Take what resonates with you and leave the rest. And if something I share sparks curiosity or brings something up for you? Bring it to your own therapy sessions. That’s where the real work happens.