Hi, I am Jane Willis,
I have spent almost 30 years developing, delivering, and evaluating creative programmes that foster health and wellbeing while also training, supporting, and mentoring artists, leaders and managers across the arts and health sector to do the same.
I love this work!
But there have been times when the stress and exhaustion of juggling work and caring responsibilities has left me overwhelmed and close to burnout.
A life-long journaller, I turned to creative writing as a way to better understand and care for myself amidst the pressures of work and life.
Having recently completed a master’s degree in creative writing for therapeutic purposes, I have translated my own creative journaling methods into a programme to share with others.
I'm aware that self-care gets a bad rap. There is a sense in which self-care is a capitalist construct whereby we are expected to take responsibility for looking after ourselves so that we can pick ourselves up, get back out there, get back to work.
But I believe that learning to care for ourselves with kindness and compassion is essential if we are to create wider cultures of care.
And - given the context of COVID, the uncertainties inherent in the arts and health sector, and the pressures of juggling work, freelance careers, and other responsibilities - this is an urgent and necessary priority for us as individuals as well as for the sector as a whole.
I invite you to join me to explore what creative self-care might look like for you.
