A Quick Fix for Post Vacation Creative Block
Have you ever been out of your routine, hosting guests, going on a trip, or returning from vacation and felt a creative disconnect? How does that happen anyway? Trips and visits can be full of inspiration, adventure, and fodder for new artwork. And yet, when I come back from traveling it seems I feel a bit lost in the studio. Don’t get me wrong, I could easily sketch and paint something after returning. However, it’s the feeling of purpose and connection that seems to be missing. I just came back from a trip as I write this and I’ve been thinking about what might be the cause of this uneasiness.
In trying to identify my emotions in all of this, my first feeling was confusion. I’m usually pretty connected to the process while working in my studio, so it’s weird for me to feel confused in my creation space. Then I assumed the problem could simply be exhaustion. I mean who doesn’t need a vacation from their vacation? And while some of that was actually going on, I believed it to be an even deeper issue. I have worked plenty of times through exhaustion, and this just didn’t feel the same.
It's human to experience creative block at times, but I think it's really important to stop and understand what the triggers are.
So I kept digging through the possibilities and realized something interesting. When we experience new things during travel, we somehow are altered by those experiences. That means we come home a slightly different person. If that’s true, then, when we go back to our normal routines, things can feel a bit different and unfamiliar.
That’s what I think happens when we come back from traveling. Once I thought this through, I gave myself some time and grace to notice what was different about me. I don’t know if I was able to identify it completely, but I did realize that I had changed and shifted, and somehow the knowledge of this allowed me to reconnect.
If we are altered by our travels, then we come back as slightly different people.
It was a relief to feel purpose, kicking back in, and clarity starting to form, as I asked myself some questions. How did this new me want to work? Was my old purpose still relevant to this new person? Was there something I needed to change in order to make room for my altered state. Since this internal shift was not a huge change, I was able to acknowledge it and go back to the projects I had left unfinished. I think it was just a matter of having a conscious awareness that there was more to me now than when I last stood here in the same spot. It’s kind of crazy to think about it that way, but that’s what I believe.
What happens when there’s a bigger shift in your life? That’s another story. I think that’s why moving houses, getting a new job, or losing a loved one can send us into a frenzy and even a panic. At that point nothing feels familiar, and nothing feels like home. I think one way to deal with internal unrest, is to find a way to get our bearings again; to somehow come back to center so we can function.
When a shift happens in our life, it’s seems like we’ve lost something, when in fact we actually have an opportunity to connect with deeper parts of ourselves.
In the meantime, coming back from a trip (or experiencing any shift in life) can feel a bit like having lost something, when in fact, we’ve gained something. It’s like two sides of the same coin. We still have to find our way back to center so we can once again get on with our purpose. Thankfully for us, being artists allows us to express all of this and more. I feel so honored and privileged to be able to pour my feelings out through my paints and be able to inspire someone else with that work.
Have you dealt with creative block after you come back from traveling? Have you experienced other things that have caused you to become derailed with your art? How did you recover and find your way again?
I’d love to hear your advice or thoughts in the comments below!