Stuck in a Creative Block? Here’s What Helped Me

How I navigated a challenging year and found my way back.

Overcoming Creative Block

We live in a time of social media. We see the highlights of everyone’s life - a glimpse, a few moments when everything appears perfect, beautiful, cosy, exciting, or inspiring.

But life doesn’t always look like that.

You might scroll through my Instagram or website and assume that my creative flow is steady, that I’m always painting and moving forward. But the truth is, throughout the entire year of 2024, I completed just one small work on a wooden panel and two small pieces on paper - works that feel complete, tell a story, and that I’m proud of.

Creatively, 2024 was incredibly challenging. I had to reframe so many thoughts, dive into the stories I had built in my mind, and shed one limiting belief after another. And, above all, I had to trust that this will pass and it is somehow needed.

At the same time, it was a year of many courses, new techniques, and then allowing myself the space to integrate it all and find my own creative language - a process I’m still in.

I never stopped creating entirely, but there were many long months when making art felt almost impossible. In that time, I had plenty of space to reflect, analyse, and find ways forward that actually work for me.

So, take what resonates, and leave out what doesn’t.

These are my thoughts, insights, and ideas - what has helped me. We might be completely different, and that’s absolutely fine.

There’s no ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach to creativity.

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A painting that never became. A reminder that not everything is meant to be finished - and that’s a lesson, too.

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What Helped Me Move Through a Creative Block

🔹 Pause. Don’t judge yourself. Give yourself a hug - mentally, physically, or both. It’s okay. You are enough, just as you are. This will pass. It always does.

🔹 Pleasure first! Do something that brings joy: go for a walk, chat with a friend who gets you, watch a great film - or a terrible one. Cook something comforting. Dance, sing! Do it, then repeat. Enjoy.

🔹 Pay attention. When you see something beautiful or moving - a landscape, a photograph, an inspiring outfit, an unexpected colour combination - pause. Notice how it makes you feel. Let it fill you up. Write it down. Don’t journal? List it in your notes app, record a voice memo, take a picture, or even send a message to yourself. Come back to it when you need it.

🔹 Don’t compare yourself to others. Inspiration is great, but when you’re stuck, comparison can quickly turn into jealousy or frustration. Mindless Instagram scrolling won’t help - I know, I’ve been there. It will only make you feel even more stuck, as if everyone else is thriving. But social media is not the full picture. We all know this, yet it’s easy to forget.

🔹 Be kind to yourself. Maybe this break is necessary. Maybe you’re making space for new ideas, new beginnings, new directions. Maybe you’ve outgrown something and are searching for a new creative language. Maybe this pause is part of your process. What if, instead of resisting, you embraced it, leaned into it?

🔹 Check in with yourself. What’s really going on? Is this a need to pause or is it procrastination? What’s underneath? What emotions come up when you think about not creating? Follow that thought all the way through. Don’t dismiss what needs to be seen. Let it all be there, without trying to change it. (Personally, I find that journaling helps me process these thoughts, you can read about it here.)

🔹 Move your body! Never underestimate the power of physical movement. A walk, a run, yoga, weightlifting, dancing, pilates - whatever works for you. Movement shifts energy. It always helps.

🔹 Play! Create something just to explore - without expectations, without pressure. Use new techniques, new tools, or unexpected materials. A piece of cardboard instead of a wedge, twigs instead of a brush, coffee instead of water. Not all work needs to be good. In fact, it can’t all be good. That’s how we learn and grow. Try making something intentionally bad. Let it be fun. Create just for the joy of it.

🔹 Learn - when you’re ready. Take a workshop, try a new technique, read about other artists, or get yourself a book on art. But only if you feel you’re past the bitterness stage. Only when you’re not in a place of comparing yourself to others. Be mindful of this judgment stage. When I dive into learning while not being kind to myself, I don’t actually absorb anything - I just feel hopeless, fixating on all the things I’ll never be, never become, never learn. But when I approach learning from a place of curiosity and openness, it becomes exciting, expansive, and full of possibilities.

🔹 Trust, trust, trust. This, too, shall pass. Document your process - what you tried, what worked, what felt hard, when you noticed a shift. Over time, you might see a pattern that helps you navigate any future creative blocks or maybe eliminate them completely! Stay curious.

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How long do pauses lasts? Somewhere between one sip of coffee and three weeks of existential doubt.

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Find What Works for You

We are all different. Try some of these, try none, try them all - but above all, trust your instincts.

Some of us thrive with goals; others hate them. Some love deadlines; others (like me) find them to be a creative killjoy. Some need to write things down (yes, me!); others prefer to talk things through. Some need words of encouragement; others just need a hug.

And if what you’re feeling goes deeper than a creative block, deeper than the stagnant energy, a phase, please take care of yourself in whatever way you need. Creativity ebbs and flows, but your well-being always comes first.

Whatever you do - be kind to yourself. Be patient. Think about what you would say to your best friend in this situation - then say it to yourself.

Be your own biggest champion.

I know this isn’t the final word on creative blocks. What helps me now might shift in the future, and I’ll definitely revisit this topic. Creativity evolves, and so do we.

And I would also recommend listening to

Asia Bochenek

podcast as she shares an interesting perspective on comparison - turning it into something surprisingly positive. She also talks about redirecting your creativity, and the moments when things are not flowing like we would like them to. (Asia is an intuitive, creative soul, and as it happens, also my sister-in-law, and her substack is definitely worth a follow).

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From my ever-curious heart to yours - Ela

PS. Have you ever been through a creative block? What helped you the most? I’d love to hear your thoughts.