Go with the Flow

The easy way to relaxation

In previous writings, I promised a post about the phenomenon called “flow.” This is that post. 

“Flow” effectively decreases or even eliminates stress completely for a period of time. This tool has helped me and many others immensely. It does not require psychotherapy and medications and is easy on the wallet.

The concept of flow is the focus of a book by expert Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi called Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience.  While this post isn’t a book review, I cannot recommend this book more highly. Reading this work was life-changing for me because it made me aware of how creating art is highly beneficial to my mind and body. 

In a nutshell, flow involves participating in an activity requiring focus and deep concentration where a person invests psychic energy for a period of time. Past wounds and future worries are obliterated; the only thing that exists is the present. Activities can include, but are not limited to, dancing, writing, creating/playing music, knitting, sewing, sketching, painting, and even working at a job that demands great attention.

The more flow one can incorporate into his or her life, according to Csikszentmihalyi, the better the quality of his or her life, self-growth, and exuberant feeling of transcendence: “Without enjoyment life can be endured, and it can even be pleasant. But it can be so only precariously, depending on luck and the cooperation of the external environment. To gain personal control over the quality of experience, however, one needs to learn how to build enjoyment into what happens day in, day out.”

He is spot on.

According to Csikszentmihalyi, flow helps guard “against the entropy that brings disorder to consciousness. It is really a battle for the self; it is a struggle for establishing control over attention.” 

Watching television and other passive activities might be enjoyable, argues Csikszentmihalyi, but they don’t create an optimal life experience. Television may bring pleasure, but it does not bring about flow or truly enhances one’s life. And coming from the flow side of things, I couldn’t agree more.

For me, the activities that give me a sense of flow are exercise, writing, and art. While I love participating in all these activities, art is the one that puts me in the most meditative state and gives me the greatest flow.

I want to discuss my meditative art practice, and you can apply this concept to your own flow activities, if you haven’t already. 

Art Therapy

Art takes me to a place where I lose self-consciousness. During the time I draw or paint, my problems and stress “disappear.” All that matters is that particular art project, so much so, that I lose track of space, place, and time. With each brush or pencil stroke, all that matters is the present and the artwork itself.

Here’s an example: I start working on an oil painting at 5 p.m. and get so lost in the painting and the resulting reverie, that before I know it it’s 2 a.m., but it feels like just a millisecond has gone by. Each moment I devote to art I am in a meditative state of absolute relaxation. And even after participating in art, I feel more “together” and focused.

This is flow.

Sometimes people have difficulty bringing about flow due to a busy life. For many, balancing work and family isn’t easy, and it’s difficult to allot time for a hobby. But a hobby that brings about a meditative state is bound to help one deal with the routine stresses of each day.

For months now I am happy to say I’ve made time for art – and flow. My mind is now conditioned for art-related reverie: all I have to do is watch my daughter create a piece of art, and waves of relaxation overcome me.

This is why I understand why adult coloring books have been all the rage. These books promote flow. I’ve purchased a few and color with my daughter, and I experience reverie while focusing on the task of coloring. 

For me, flow is about functioning and managing stress better. To cope with stress, we need to enhance our own quality of life. If we can create flow in our lives, we can better deal with the stresses life has to offer.

Below is the first full draft of the sunflower I am painting. I felt flow throughout working on this piece, which is a challenge because the sun is behind the sunflower. I was relaxed while painting. The artwork still needs a lot of improvement. One can see bits of the canvas and sketched lines, but I know that eventually, these won’t be visible.

The background has some indications of mountains, but that, plus the sunflower’s foliage, leave too much green for my liking. So I did an experiment on my palette paper and mixed two colors that I would have never thought to mix, and I got a nice color effect. I really like it, but I have to wait for the paint on this draft to dry before I use it. 

The color? My little secret for now.

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday, dear readers, and may you have an enjoyable meal with a side order of flow!

What activities relax you? 

Have you ever experienced flow? If so, what activity/activities have prompted this phenomenon?