Mental Health Isn't Just About Quieting Your Mind

It's about actively engaging it - and creativity is our entrypoint.

Hey there,

Katina here, Daydreamers’ Co-founder and Chief Science Officer. Every May, the world - briefly - turns its attention to mental health.

It’s Mental Health Awareness Month and with that, campaigns roll out. Hashtags circulate. Companies, experts, and individuals share their advice.

As I’m sure you probably know by now, for us at Daydreamers, mental health isn’t a trend. It’s the heartbeat of everything we do.

But as a Creative Health Scientist, there’s something that boggles my mind as we enter this time each year: We keep recycling the same well-meaning, but surface-level, one-size-fits-all advice. Meditate. Quiet your mind. Silence your thoughts, and you’ll feel better.

While those tools do work for some, for millions of us navigating disconnection, burnout, or emotional numbness, they’re not just ineffective. They can feel like we’re putting a bandaid on a deeper wounds.

They ask us to silently suppress, instead of engage. To tune out, instead of make change.

And for many, especially those healing from trauma or living through constant stress, meditation can actually make things worse. In fact, recent research shows that over 25% of regular meditators report increased anxiety, disorientation, or emotional discomfort.

So, in the spirit of Mental Health Awareness Month and using this platform to advocate for change, I want to offer you a new idea. A new way to think about caring for your mental health, especially if the common advice never seemed to work.

This one is less about tuning out, and more about tuning in - because what if the missing link in our mental health toolkit wasn’t more silence… but more self-expression?

Creativity is one of the most overlooked, yet powerful, mental health tools we have. Not because it’s aesthetic or a fun hobby - but because expression is how we make sense of ourselves. When we create, we don’t just express our feelings; we transform them. It gives us agency. Meaning. Emotional clarity.

I don’t talk about this often, but it was through my own hardest moments - depression, grief, burnout - that I found my way back to creativity. Listen, I tried all the wellness tools. But, it really wasn’t until I started expressing again that I felt something shift.

That’s honestly why Daydreamers exists - to turn creativity into a science-backed, accessible practice for our mental and emotional health. Something you can do anytime, anywhere, no matter your skill level or story.

And later this month, we’re launching something new to help you tap into it. If you’re not already part of the deeper Daydreamers community, now’s the time to join us.

In the meantime, let’s dive into this week’s exploration: How we’re rethinking mental health - and why it starts with turning the volume up - not out - on your inner world.

*Reflections from a real Daydreamers member

Silence Isn’t Always Soothing: What’s Happening In The Brain

Over the past two decades, meditation has become the “gold standard” for mental well-being.

It’s recommended by therapists, promoted by wellness companies, and positioned as the universal cure for emotional stress. And listen, for many, it is powerful; I, too, have turned to meditation to cultivate mindful awareness when I needed it most.

But we’re missing a deeper, more nuanced conversation about when - and for who - silence may not be the answer.

First, let’s get specific: When we say “meditation” here, we’re referring to focused, often silent, internal practices - like inner awareness, body scans, or mindful observation - that aim to quiet the mind and heighten awareness.

These practices are rooted in both modern, scientific mindfulness and ancient contemplative traditions. But even in those traditions, meditation was never the first step.

Years ago, I was trained as a yoga teacher and I found this fascinating: In classical yoga, meditation is the seventh step (or limb) of the practice - only pursued after grounding, movement, breathwork, and inner focus have been completed.

Why? Because sitting in stillness is incredibly psychologically vulnerable if you haven’t yet built the tools to hold what surfaces.

That ancient insight brings us to what’s missing in today’s mental health narrative: For some of us, being alone with silence isn’t always soothing.

For many people - especially those moving through grief, trauma, emotional dysregulation, or chronic stress - the practice of meditation can amplify distress instead of easing it. Rather than finding clarity, they may feel emotionally flooded, paralyzed, or disconnected from themselves.

Recent science is starting to catch up to what many have already felt in their bodies. For example, a 2019 large-scale study from University College London found that 25% of regular meditators experience dysregulated emotional states, intrusive thoughts, or derealization - especially in intensive or unstructured contexts.

Specifically, these effects are more common among people with high neuroticism, prior trauma, or unstable mood states - which are precisely the populations most often prescribed meditation in the first place.

For these folks, meditation can activate the parts of our brain associated with reflection and emotional regulation - which can amplify the internal chatter, bring up feelings we’re not ready to process or even intensify flashbacks in people with trauma histories, leading to panic or dissociation.

Now, my intention in sharing this research isn’t to knock meditation as a tool. And in fact, this doesn’t mean meditation is inherently harmful - far from it. It’s a profound practice if we’re ready for it.

But, it’s not one-size-fits-all and quite honestly, it was never meant to be.

Even more, there are many other mental health tools we can explore. And, that’s where creative expression comes in - not as a replacement, but as an equally valid, scientifically grounded pathway for emotional processing and self-regulation.

One that may be more powerful for those of us with different brains, because it meets us not in detachment, but in movement, narrative, imagination, and agency.

One of my favorite studies actually looked at this exact difference. Researchers set out to understand how people coped with isolation and uncertainty, using a variety of different mental health tools - from flow-based activities to mindful meditation.

While mindfulness meditation helped some, many participants also reported heightened anxiety - especially those with pre-existing emotional distress. But those who turned to creative flow activities - like sketching, knitting or writing - showed greater psychological resilience over time, improved focus, and higher moods.

In part, that’s because they didn’t suppress their emotions. They tuned in and shaped them into something new.

Especially in times of uncertainty, creativity offers what so many of us are quietly craving: catharsis. It invites us to become active participants in our own healing - to make meaning out of the mess.

Here’s exactly how.

---

Expanding Our Mental Health Toolkit: Creativity As A Form Of Psychological Care

Let’s get something straight: If you’ve been part of this community for a while, you know that creativity isn’t just painting in a fancy studio or working on your novel. It’s the expansive ways that we process, express, and make sense of our inner world.

This is creativity’s underrated superpower: It gives the brain and body somewhere to go with what you’re feeling. Unlike tools that ask you to quiet your thoughts, creativity lets you safely engage with them - transforming chaos into meaning.

Over the past few weeks, we’ve explored many of the reasons why tuning in is so powerful for our mental and emotional health: Mini-c creativity - the type that’s simply meaningful to you - closes the stress cycle; helps us expand our sense of time; activates our senses and makes our brain more flexible, just to name a few.

But one we haven’t talked about is that often, our emotions - especially difficult ones like grief, shame, or numbness - can feel abstract and overwhelming.

Creative expression (even doodling!) gives those feelings shape, making them visible, nameable, and manageable. This is known in psychology as externalization, and it’s a key part of emotional processing.

Even more, any form of creativity activates every major mental health system in the brain:

• The prefrontal cortex that helps regulate emotion and reframe meaning

• The default mode network that fosters self-reflection, imagination, and storytelling

• The reward system releases dopamine - the brain’s motivation and mood chemical

• The parasympathetic nervous system triggers calm and safety in the body

At Daydreamers, we’ve seen this firsthand. In our own studies, people who engaged in short creative exercises just three times a week reported a 30% reduction in burnout. That was true no matter their background, skill level, or whether they saw themselves as a “creative person.”

And, the broader science backs up what we see in our own work. Researchers have found that just 45 minutes of mini-c creativity literally changes our biology, reducing cortisol levels - the body’s primary stress hormone - regardless of their skill level or experience.

But, it’s not just about lowering stress. Being creative actually expands our positive emotions, too. One of our favorite studies ever published in The Journal of Positive Psychology found that everyday creative acts - cooking, collaging, dancing - led to higher levels of flourishing and lower symptoms of depression.

The reason? What psychological researchers call an “upward spiral” of emotional well-being: the more people created, the better they felt. And the better they felt, the more they wanted to create.

All of this matters even more because most mental health tools - while valid - aren’t accessible to everyone. Therapy can be expensive. Medication isn’t one-size-fits-all. And as we’ve seen, meditation, while powerful for some, can heighten distress for those navigating trauma or emotional overwhelm.

That’s where creativity comes in. It’s expressive and regulatory. Grounded and imaginative. Simple and profound.

And most importantly: It’s already inside of you.

From my view, this conversation is really just scratching the surface on what’s possible when we begin to use our creative brains for mental and emotional well-being. There’s so much more to talk about - and, we’ll continue to explore the vast world of Creative Health together in this newsletter and through our Daydreamers community.

But, the reason why creativity is so powerful to me? It doesn’t just help us cope; it helps us feel most alive. And, every single one of us has the capacity to unlock - and really, return to - our greatest human superpower.

With that, anything is possible.

- Katina

Daydreamers’ Co-Founder and Chief Science Officer

---

Your Creative Act: Share This Newsletter With Someone Who Needs It

Creative Health isn’t just a nice-to-have. It’s the missing link for our mental, emotional and collective well-being. And at Daydreamers, we’re building a movement to make sure every single person has access to the resources that allow them to flourish.

Because of that, we’re on a mission to reach 100,000 Creative Brains that receive this newsletter. So, if someone popped into your mind while reading this, forward it to them now. Every single forward, mention, share and recommendation counts. Creativity is inherently about sharing, sparking conversations and taking action - so, think of this as your creative act for the day.

---

Creative Health Protocol 🧠

This newsletter is the what, and the Daydreamers platform is the how - your guide to turning Creative Health insights into real, tangible action. Here’s a peek.

A Mental Health Tool: Emotional Offloading

• What it is: Do you remember a while back we talked about a concept we love at Daydreamers called Cognitive Offloading? It’s based on the scientific premise that our brains can only hold a limited amount of information at any given time. When our minds are overloaded with thoughts - especially unspoken or unresolved ones - we can feel anxious, disorganized, and creatively blocked.

  When we ‘offload’ those thoughts into the physical world (think: to-do lists, white boards), we literally create more space in the brain for creative thinking and problem solving.

  At Daydreamers, we’ve taken that same science and applied it to your emotions. We call it Emotional Offloading - the practice of safely externalizing what you're feeling so you can free up cognitive and emotional bandwidth for what matters most: freedom, play, curiosity, and joy.

• How you can experiment with it: One of our favorite ways to try this is through a quick creative exercise we call “A Dose of Catharsis” - a really simple way to not only release pent-up frustration, but also kick off that positive upward emotional spiral. You can try it at home by doodling your current emotional state on a scrap of paper - using chaotic scribbles to get it out. The goal here isn’t beauty or perfection. It’s release. Notice what shifts in your body or mind once you externalize what’s been stuck inside.

---

What We’re Loving This Week 🪐

We’re all about simplicity, clarity and depth - so instead of overwhelming you with a random mix of news, here’s one standout idea, read, brand or project that’s really supporting our Creative Health this week.

A New Form Of Mental Health: The Daydreamers Platform

Not to toot our own horn, but we’ve spent years at Daydreamers turning creativity into a science-backed mental health exercise. Not a luxury. Not a side hobby. But a repeatable, scientifically-validated health practice that helps you feel more alive - especially when the world feels uncertain.

The Daydreamers platform is designed to be accessible, affordable and most importantly, a fun way to strengthen your creative, mental and emotional health. Later this month, we’re launching something new to help you tap into this anytime, anywhere - so, if you’re not already part of the Daydreamers community, now’s the time to join!

We’d love to know: What are the most surprising mental, emotional and creative health practices that work for you? Did this deep dive around meditation give you the words for something you may not have recognized in the past?

We’re all ears - use the comments section to share freely! 🧠✨

---

By joining Daydreamers, you’re not just unlocking your own Creative Health - you’re helping us build a world where resources like this newsletter are free for everyone to access. Ready to help us make the world a more creative place?