Artist
I drew the artwork, titled Striped Pattern, with pens and markers, then photographed it with an app on my phone. I then manipulated and layered the image in Photoshop to create the end result. I like playing with patterns in Photoshop because it offers me an opportunity to practice mindfulness skills.
I tried to write this piece as a longer blog post, but I had a hard time emotionally processing the act of writing. I decided that a poem would be the right medium for the material because it conveys its message more efficiently.
Artist
by Tara
I am a bipolar-type, too-rapid cycler.
I am a schizotypal schizoaffective.
I am a bipolar.
I’m a borderline — give me Paxil.
I’m a goddess — lay me down.
Tie me up.
I must be a murderer.
I have bipolar disorder.
I experience depression.
I am an artist.
I identify with Tara’s poem so much that it is making me tearful. People often assume that I go through life without any problems. That is partly because I am a very private person. I do not like making myself vulnerable to others. I do not like showing emotion. I do not like showing my flaws. I suffer from depression, lack of self-esteem, and PTSD, though often hiding these from my friends. I have spoken briefly about feeling like a failure. This is hard to convey to other people. That feeling of failure is always haunting me. It goes back to my childhood. I want to thank Tarali for writing this. Expressing yourself helps so much. Art is therapy. Art transforms us.
I appreciate you sharing!