Art for Your Sanity: How Art Journaling Can Help You Manage Chaos and Unleash Joy

Art journal your way to joy and transform life's chaos into creative play. When you were a child, there was no better feeling than picking up a crayon and letting your imagination run free. The joy, simplicity, and freedom of just creating was easy and honest. As you became an adult, life became complicated and overwhelming. When navigating the tricky path of inevitable life changes—like job loss, relationships, infertility, grief, or uncertainty of the future—it can be a struggle to find that simple clarity again. How can you manage the chaos and find your authentic self again? In Art for Your Sanity, Susan Hensley offers a powerful tool to help you deal with uncertainty and tap into your innate wisdom and creativity: art journaling. Through personal essays, practical tips, and engaging prompts, Susan shows how putting colors, shapes, and images on paper can be a profound path to self-discovery, emotional healing, and unleashing joy. An easy, inexpensive hobby requiring no artistic skill, art journaling gives you a safe space to explore your full range of emotions, get out of your overthinking left brain, and explore your intuitive, creative right brain. Discover how to: Use your journal as a container for complex emotions and a mirror to reveal hidden thought patterns and beliefs. Cultivate mindfulness, self-compassion, and a healthy relationship with your inner critic. Find joy, play, and a reignited passion for life in the midst of great change. Use the brain science behind the benefits of art journaling, including its ability to reduce stress, promote relaxation, and enhance self-awareness. Use techniques to process difficult feelings, such as grief and trauma, which can't be accessed verbally or consciously. Packed with vibrant examples from Susan's own art journals, Art for Your Sanity will help you reclaim the wisdom, wonder, and free spirit you had as a child—and show you how to infuse your life with more color, play, and joy, one journal page at a time.