hi there
How are you doing today?
I thought I would share a little with you about how creating through my Expressive Art Approach will help you raise your Confidence, Reduce your Anxiety & Stress levels and lift your Mood.
I believe our confidence tends to be snatched away from us very early on in our childhood when those around us insist that our natural instinct is 'wrong' and they are 'right'.
This can be applied to many things, from naturally using our left hand to feed ourselves or draw... to choosing our friends... to which clothes we wish to wear... to how we do in school... to our new girl/boyfriend... to the kind of job we want to do...
Add into the mix Education Systems, Government, a God/Deity with all of their Values, Beliefs and 'Rules' and I believe our self esteem and confidence can plummet and remain crumbled in a heap whilst we 'try hard to get things Right' for all of these 'Parent' figures.
This is why one of my most key approaches throughout my Mindful Expressive Art experiences is to Trust in our own Impulses, Intuition and Process.
This is something that comes with "doing" I find. If I invite you often enough, to 'do', to Trust in Your Own Process, I believe it becomes easier and the more you Trust in YOU, your confidence will soar, your stress and anxiety reduces, you feel great, like you could Do Anything!
I promote Trusting & Following in our gut, our intuition because I believe this eases our stress and anxiety around Rules and Getting It Right.
If we go with our gut then how can this possibly be wrong? Try the opposite (usual) way for a moment. Just imagine, you have picked up something that interests you and suddenly 'An Other' elbows in with 'No, Not That! THIS... This is what you are interested in, Silly...!'
Immediately I sense disappointment, then shame, and along with that comes a sort of wobbly feeling of 'Oh No, I got that wrong again, I just can't trust in myself to know what is best for me...' This then 'tells' me I can't trust my instincts or intuition therefore I need to look to others, an 'Authority' for what is 'right'.
Does this resonate for you?
How many times do we witness a Parent harshly berating a toddler for reaching out to touch something of interest in a shop for example. Followed by 'NO!' and 'DON'T Touch!' then threats of 'Do you want to be put back in your buggy?!' or worse still, 'The police will come and take you away if you touch that!'
The Parent of course is worried their child will break something and that in itself will be embarrassing. Add to that, possibly being asked to leave the shop - shaming us... or asking us to pay for breakages. So we can understand the Parent behaving this way, however... it does nothing for the Child's self esteem and confidence.
Going in to a shop may become very anxiety provoking and stressful for a child which can lead to greater issues later in life. 'Oh no, not shopping again, (dread) that's scary,'.
No wonder the child creates havoc being forced into a buggy or car seat to go shopping with the threat of being arrested!
You may wonder "How on earth can making art with Kassi help raise my confidence, ditch a load of stress and anxiety and make me feel happy?'
Well now we come full circle. When I invite you to create, I invite your Inner Toddler out to play. Apart from 'Please don't eat the paint' there are no Rules. I also offer you a step by step process to participate in, but this is simply an invitation. You are most definitely invited, and free, to trust in your own gut, follow your instincts and if you wish to squirt trails of paint all over your canvas and squash them with your fingers, I will celebrate this and watch proudly as you go exploring with squirt trails of colourful paint like a proud Mother :-)) I would never say 'No! You MUST Do It This Way.' I offer space and freedom for you to touch, smell, feel, play and experiment...
The process I offer is only there to say, 'you can try this if you would like to but please do follow your own impulses and go off on tangents, have fun and explore.'
Trusting your gut is the one key thing that will lead you to find your own voice through art making and - as it happens - living your life.
You will notice your stress and anxiety ease, you will find yourself feeling more confident out there in the world of family, work, friendships... you will extend your new found relaxed, confident self to your whole world.
You will probably try new things without fear of getting it 'wrong' because you've discovered my approach offers you space and freedom to trust in your own interests and impulses and for me, these can only be 'Right'.
It all feels so good. You may take more risks. Start enjoying life and releasing yourself from all the shackles (rules and values) that once kept you on the straight and narrow (ie anxious and stressed trying to get it right).
I am completely confident you won't become Unlawful & Dangerous :-)) but I do feel confident that you will simply feel free to trust in yourself and enjoy life.
So to recap... I demonstrate my own way (not a 'right' way!) of creating a Mixed Media Painting or Collage, and I also share my own process moment by moment (whatever is coming up for me as I create) whilst inviting You to trust in Your own process and do whatever feels right for you in that moment.
In terms of 'getting things right, or knowing art techniques', I am a rule breaker. I blend certain art materials together because I love the impact of them on my eye and my levels of Joy. I don't care that I am 'not supposed to do that' because if I don't do it, then I won't feel my Joy of how it looks and feels when I do!
I hope, and in fact confidently know, that what I offer, my art courses (or my Counselling sessions in fact) Will help You develop confidence, reduce stress & anxiety which was all set up a very long time ago by Following The 'Parent' Rules.
Through my courses I help you reverse all those shackles, snapping them from your ankles and wrists and offering you freedom to experiment, grow and feel absolutely wonderful in the process.
You can give all this a go for FREE by choosing one or both of my free ecourses. You can connect with me in my free online community where I am responsive and warm and encouraging towards your new, playful, experimenting Self if you want that. Here is a link to my two free ecourses to find out more and sign up if you wish.
MAGIC SQUARES https://www.kassimartin.com/e-courses-sign-up/magic-squares
WILD FLOWERS https://www.kassimartin.com/e-courses-sign-up/wildflowers
Here is what Jacqui said about Magic Squares;
"I find it hard to sum up Kassi's Magic Squares ecourse in just a few words as it has had a really fundamental and liberating effect on me! I find it incredibly relaxing and a great stress reliever, and it has become a tool to use to deal with my everyday anxieties and stresses. But greater than that, it inspired me to start keeping an art journal, using oil pastels, largely based on Magic Squares... I kind of took the theme and ran with it and it has become a means of checking in with myself and how I am emotionally. It makes me feel very happy and content, I would go as far as to say I NEED to create in my art journal for my general Well Being. On top of that it is giving me an enormous amount of pleasure." Jacqui du Rocher
If you really, truly want to sign up (that is your intuition, your impulses at work) but are holding back (probably your Inner Critic telling you lots of negative stories), feel free to email me for a chat ( This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. ) - I won't obligate you. I may be able to help you find confidence in yourself to take that first step in just trying something free of charge with me.
What is there to lose? I can't think of anything, can you?
This is what Tracy said about Letting Go;
"Letting Go has been a truly inspiring experience. I am in amazement at just how many of my life processes have emerged during this creative process and the learning and awareness that has opened up for me as a result ... what a journey. Kassi is warm and empathic, and I've really valued her support and gentle encouragement." Tracy
If you have questions or think I can help you with anything, get in touch This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. - I am The Girl Who Loves To Help Others With Expressive Art For All.
warmly
Kassi