Chaos, the River, and Mental Health
- Gina Greenlee, Author
- Jun 29
- 2 min read
The River
After years of experimenting and practicing trust in how my mind works, I discovered research by neuroscientists, journalists, professors, organizational experts and artists that affirmed my process discoveries. Moreover, their research demonstrated my experiences were not unique to me. It’s how the human brain works. I had tapped the flow of collective experience. This was revelation. And relief. It’s tempting to think you’re going crazy when dozens of ideas are flying at you at once.
Surrender to Organic Experience
Years before, in the aftermath of a debilitating depression, I learned about the creative power of surrendering to organic experience. Mimicking the lives of others undermined my strengths and contributed, in part, to struggles with depression. When I was not true to me, I was literally pressing down (de-pressing) on my authenticity. It made for a shrouded life.
That Dark Night of the Soul put me on a path of embracing the often inexplicable and puckish arrival of ideas.
Rather than shut down the tsunami of ideas because I was afraid of being overwhelmed, I surrendered to it. And actively invited it in:
Ultradian rhythm practice.
Honoring the Flow
Surrendering to a forceful flow of ideas favorably altered the trajectory of my writing and not coincidentally, mental health. I went from:
Ignoring the organic tsunami of ideas (resulting in depression) to
Pathologizing it (“I must be crazy”) to
Experimenting (if this isn’t “nuts” then what is it?) to
Nurturing and relating (habitually creating conditions for the arrival of ideas) to
Possibility: the discovery and development of emergent ideas in visual art, writing and in life.
Chaos and Order are Not Mutually Exclusive
They are an interrelated energy developing anew each moment. If we adhere so tightly to an outline or an end goal for a piece of writing and don’t explore possibilities along the way, our art may not have the juice we’d like. Instead, we can approach the days of our lives with a plan (order) while also enjoying adventures and discoveries (chaos) that emerge each moment.
