Do medications kill the creativity?

[gogidolim]

I gotta admit, I was diagnosed with bipolar. I am taking a minimal dose of Abilify (5mg). I feel great, except that I stopped wanting to do anything creative since I started taking the medication in 2007. Surely I go to figure drawing workshop, but that's just to brush up my drawing skill. I don't feel like drawing characters, vehicles and stuff.

The problem is, without the medication I become the most pissed-off and angry individual in the whole block. A small dose of medication will make me a jovial and happy person (without creative impulse, though) but without that daily dose of 5mg...I become really pissed off, angry, and feel like shit.

I wonder if any of you take bipolar med and got your creativity quenched.

[Enydimon]

I don't know, man, some people smoke a joint or drink until they're pissed and find they do some really creative work. So I imagine medication can probably make us less creative or more creative, depending.

I do know, though, that when I was on medication some of them just made me feel really mellowed out and lethargic. So it's a possibility.

[nauvice]

I am bipolar. I think I am, havent been to the doctor to be diagnose or take medications yet. But I think it's all in your head. I mean Im not on medications and I still find it hard to push myself to draw because I'm dealing with other stresses right now. Anything else that changed since you started taking your medication, that may be bothering you?

[Baron Impossible]

Bipolar disorder has been linked to creativity so it's probably not surprising that drugs to control it suppress that creativity. Then again, from my limited knowledge that's the mania side, bi-polar being a form of manic-depression, and if you feel "pissed-off, angry and like shit" all the time without meds then that doesn't sound like bi-polar at all, it sounds like straight depression.

[Viridis]

I don't have personal experience with this, but considering that drugs affect your brain chemistry, it's entirely possible. I follow the blog of one of my favorite artists, and she had a similar problem. While taking meds for depression, her productivity tanked noticeably. She still did work, but not nearly as much as before the meds.

However, if you really need that small dose to not be a crazy person, then... I would say just try to force yourself to work like everybody else who feels unmotivated does.

[the_jos]

I can't say much about Abilify but can say a little about some meds in general.

My ex was on meds against panic attacks for a while and I know it had a huge influence on her feelings. I'm on heart medication at the moment and I think it has influence on my feelings. To be somewhat more specific about that last one, even when I do something very exhausting or am getting a huge emotional moment my heart rate won't jump up. This suppresses some of my feelings since it also influences body chemisty.
But the moment I forget my meds my mind goes crazy, I can't keep quiet and my whole body wants to get moving and my brain becomes a small storm of thoughts.

So there is influence on feelings, no doubt about that.
However, this has nothing to do with creativity. I've seen that with my ex and experienced it myself.
Creativity is about an inspiring environment and sound working habbit.
I learned to draw regardless of how I feel. Just sit down and get the sketchbook. Every weekend. Other things get in between sometimes but not my feelings.
And when I don't see something inspiring around me I make sure the next time there will be something.

Best advice I can give you? Get used to draw/paint at specific moments of the day/week regardless of your feelings or creativity. Creativity will follow, it might just take a while.

[Pezz]

I have never been diagnosed with depression or bipolar or anything, but my family doctor gave me some wellbutrin to help me limp through a terrible crisis of a time until I could sort out what was wrong with me (and I finally did).

It was the soul crushing lack of self esteem and feelings of guilt that this situation left me sapped of creativity for a while, but the medication didn't help it. The medication just made me feel manic, made my sleep patterns worse, and made me feel "neutral" at times for lack of a better term.

It wasn't until I kicked the meds to the curb, realizing I had no problem with my neurotransmitters, and resolved what my actual problem was and came to terms with it that my creativity returned. I'm not suggesting you do that, but that's my story.

[PieterV]

Drugs have different effects on people. I have the opposite problem, I get much less productive whenever I'm not on antidepressants. The drugs are supposed to stimulate and supress certain pathways in the brain causing a certain emotional state. We're all products of out mental en enviromental structures and relationships, so when you're having a hard time bieng creative because of internal struggles it's good to try to adapt your enviroment so it will stimulate you. Try getting someone to coach you, this could be someone in your direct enviroment or someone you can chat with online. Basically someone to remind kick your ass when you're not getting anything done ;P.
Having a schedule can also be stimulation. Making a todo list for stuff you want to get done that week might provide some of the needed pressure.
I also find that having some sketchbooks laying around in sight helps.
Always drawing in the same place might also get a bit stale after a while. I like keeping a sketchbook and going outside or to other places to sketch sometimes.
I saw a thread yesterday about someone who always wentg sketching in the Starbucks because he found it easier to be creative there.
Don't know what else to add...
Good luck!

[ferretula]

man, i used to be depressed, dyslexic, AND had A.D.D. started smoking weed and doodling, turned into smoking weed and touching up my doodles, turned into getting high and turning those pics into painting, long story short, weed kicked my problems, got me more creative and focused, and made me feel happier.

[AChipps]

As much that has happened to me I should be depressed, but I'm never angry, because I changed everything I didn't like about myself, and how I think, and react. That was very hard to break all my bad habbits, but now I am mellow and think things through before I consider how to react, and after a while I learned that emotions are from our reactions to thing other people do, and we use them to make it hard on ourselves, like hate or depressed, these are just choices we control to punish ourselves, for what happens. I thought that if I feel anything by choice I would want to feel happy, and that way of thinking makes me no different than you, but I use choices to be the way I am and not drugs.
I thought I lost all my creative skill, and imagination, and I looked back to remember I never really had any imagination. I used a method of getting them out, like using themes to think back when I saw the ocean, the mountain, and caves, the fur and pine trees, images of Yellowstone park, and that helped me recreate things people like to see. I do Sci-fi the same way, but I wrote a story, that I really got into, and after reading it again, it seemed to be amazing, and inspired me to draw again. My family has Epilepsy, and I past it on to my daughter, but I'm sure I had it, and might still do, but I control it with the way I think, and how I remember. With something like that and being bit by a dog that had it foaming at the mouth until he died from over heat, I know it can be controled mentally. It is caused mentally by just something happening that reminds you of a stroke, and that makes your mind let go and sends you into repeating the whole thing. To me that is giving up control to a mental condition. I don't let that happen, so the most that will happen is I black out, from lack of vitamin B-12 It helps the brain get nutrition, and oxygen. I found other things I like doing more than art, but art has always been one of my more natural things because I have done it for so long, like wood working. When I started working for companies to make media player skins, I could not think of anything to do next, but as soon as I set down, I started doing this, and that, without a clue what I was going to do next, and when I had something to work with, I started to think of adding things, or trying things I didn't do before. Then I started thinking of themes, and I was rolling out a lot of artwork, but I only had a thought of what I would start with, like silk, gold paint, and create everything in photoshop, and until I was finished I had no clue how it would look, and no imagination to create, just the skill to do it.

[timpaatkins]

"Inspiration is for amateurs. I just get to work"


Chuck Close

[DefiledVisions]

"Inspiration is for amateurs. I just get to work"


Chuck Close

disagree..

anyway. On what level can you control your mood? There should be a possibility for you to re-direct the negative energy into creating something. Take that anger and instead of going around being pissed all day get rid of it by drawing.. some people go and punch a bag for an hour, I draw for an hour.

[Blue Severin]

huh, most of the people I know who are good are pretty goddam pissed off.

[dirtydiesel]

bi-polar being a form of manic-depression, and if you feel "pissed-off, angry and like shit" all the time without meds then that doesn't sound like bi-polar at all, it sounds like straight depression.

bipolar disorder and manic depression are the same thing.

i have bipolar II and people often seem to think that the manic states of bipolar disorder are restricted to happy, euphoric feelings.

but in many people, manic states manifest as extreme aggression and irritability. this is what happens to me, so this assertion is kind of flawed.

as far as the creativity aspect is concerned, i gave medication a try and my artistic productivity completely halted. i've more or less come to the conclusion that i would rather be miserable and out of control and still be able to paint and draw. i've taken a lot of flak for this, though... :(

[paperclip]

I'm a student pharmacist and we get a lot of people coming in asking about situations like this. I wouldn't take weed if you're on antidepressants- it can compound problems and lead to paranoia. We usually tell the patient to discuss this with their physician as oftentimes the situation can be improved by changing the meds. You're on a low dose which means that it'll be easier for you to try a different med and see if that helps. What works for one person may or may not work for someone else, depending on the individual's lifestyle and needs. Ask your doctor about taking St. John's Wort- it's indicated for mild to moderate depression and anxiety and has far fewer side effects. I can't say take this or take that as I don't know your medical history, what you're taking at the moment etc, but it's definitely worth asking your physician about alternatives and ask him whether St. John's Wort would be a good option for you.

Hope this helps!