Hi IndieSoul,

The one thing that I've always wanted to do for a career was to be a writer. I'm an avid reader, & have journaled/written poetry since the age of 14, which was my only outlet & what saved my life. Later on, I started doing collages to express myself. I have a great appreciation for art, but don't think I'm very talented. Well, in the past few years, I've stopped doing all three of those things. I think I've lost interest b/c I'm so depressed, when writing & doing artwork is the very thing I need to be doing to get my mind out of this dark place.
Perna, I have the book The Artist's Way, & I agree that it's wonderful & inspiring. I've started it several times, but my depression gets in the way & my enthusiasm recedes. Would anyone be interesting in doing a group chat based on the book? We could support & encourage each other to keep with it.
Back to your initial q.- Yes, I am constantly looking for validation & it's exhausting. Usually, when people notice how hard I'm trying, they will take advantage of it. So, I'm trying very hard to learn to stop doing that & validate myself. My dx is Borderline Personality Disorder, which culminates in large part due to parents/family who invalidate our thoughts & feelings as children. This is why I constantly seek it from others. Idk if you have that dx, but it might be worth looking into the reasons why you do it, since it's a recurring pattern.
Please let me know what you think about the chat. Thanks.