Creativity....

Sometimes psychotic · Jun 28, 2014 at 05:22 PM

What George Lucas and Kurt Vonnegut?s brains tell us about genius and insanity ? Quartz

So this is a really nice long read but not too complex more like something you could read to relax in a bath or something. Anyway...there has always been this mysterious link between creativity and mental illness and it is basically an interview with a guy who scans the brains of geniuses and takes histories of them and their families....there isn't any outcome mentioned per se so much as it's a build up for the future publications for this guy but it's well written and there is a lot of detail in famous people who have sz or mood disorders in their families. And it's well written so there is an inherent pleasure in reading it....

So I've been into polls lately so I'm going to ask a question....

Do you consider yourself to be more creative than other people you know without mental illness?

Sometimes psychotic · Jun 28, 2014 at 05:23 PM

I voted yes because I really enjoy art as a hobby and a lot of people retired that along with their crayons....

Atypical_Disaster · Jun 28, 2014 at 05:31 PM

Sometimes psychotic, thank you for sharing!

Okay seriously though, I consider myself creative yes but I don't think that's because of mental illness. I think it's just a part of my personality.

Sometimes psychotic · Jun 28, 2014 at 05:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Atypical_Disaster

Sometimes psychotic, thank you for sharing!

.

That is too funny.....I know this is going to burn out quickly but right now it's so fun....

Erti · Jun 28, 2014 at 05:35 PM

I voted yes. Mostly because I think I'm more creative than the population in general.

Jun 28, 2014 at 05:45 PM

Voted no, I think I used to be in hypos though. But maybe I just thought that.

But I used to be into music WAY more than I am now.

TheatreKid · Jun 28, 2014 at 05:49 PM

I consider myself more creative than the general population, but not due to mental illness. There are people with no mental illness who are more creative than me, and I am more creative than some people with mental illness.

There's also a distinction between creativity and output. Some people are exceedingly creative but lack the ability to put their ideas into reality.

Sometimes psychotic · Jun 28, 2014 at 06:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheatreKid

There's also a distinction between creativity and output. Some people are exceedingly creative but lack the ability to put their ideas into reality.

So in the article they talk about this...some people are innovators they are the kites in the analogy and they come up with a lot of ideas but only a few are practical and then there are the strings....these are the engineers and they are very practical and convert the output of the innovators into something usable...

Sometimes psychotic · Jun 28, 2014 at 06:08 PM

Yeah so I didn't mean to imply that the creativity had to be linked directly to periods of illness etc but some of what the idea in this article was that there could be brain structure/function changes that are helpful with creativity but might increase chances of you or a close relative having a mental illness. Many of the people studied don't themselves have an illness. One of the examples used but never scanned was Einstein...had he met a modern day psych he probably would have been dxed with something but his son had sz. So Einstein was exceptionally creative but not obviously ill just a little different but his son was clearly ill. It's more of a correlation than a direct link but it's interesting.

TheatreKid · Jun 28, 2014 at 06:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sometimes psychotic

So in the article they talk about this...some people are innovators they are the kites in the analogy and they come up with a lot of ideas but only a few are practical and then there are the strings....these are the engineers and they are very practical and convert the output of the innovators into something usable...

I am definitely an innovator then. Especially in the medium I am most comfortable in, like music and theatre, I come up with ridiculous ideas, some of which could be brilliant, but I lack the ability to bring it to fruition.

I have a really off-the-wall sense of humour. I find really random things funny, and sometimes my ideas only make sense to me.

junkDNA · Jun 28, 2014 at 06:57 PM

i was thinking about something similar to this yesterday. i was looking through an old sketchbook i found that i drew and wrote in. i was definitely more creative when i was psychotic and not consistently taking my meds but now that i do take my meds every day i feel less creative. like im inhibited. and dulled down. it makes me sad and it's f_cked up but i kind of miss being that creative. it was good hobby to have.

Sometimes psychotic · Jun 28, 2014 at 07:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by junkDNA

i was thinking about something similar to this yesterday. i was looking through an old sketchbook i found that i drew and wrote in. i was definitely more creative when i was psychotic and not consistently taking my meds but now that i do take my meds every day i feel less creative. like im inhibited. and dulled down. it makes me sad and it's f_cked up but i kind of miss being that creative. it was good hobby to have.

Sorry...that sucks....

TheatreKid · Jun 28, 2014 at 07:10 PM

I only draw/paint when I'm manic. I don't get upset that I can't do it when I'm not manic, because what I think is incredibly earth-shatteringly brilliant while I'm manic is really a pile of poop, I'm just so manic my confidence is inflated.

I have found a lot of success in writing and music, but I still find myself unable to really tell if maybe I'm getting a little carried away with myself. In some ways, telling myself I'm amazing gives me the confidence to do my best work, but just because *I* think it's awesome doesn't mean it is.

I write what I consider good poetry when I'm depressed. I write crappy, pretentious poetry when I'm manic. I do my best work when I'm relatively within normal mood range. High normal or low normal. I am no more or less capable on meds or off meds.

Rand. · Jun 29, 2014 at 10:43 AM

I'm really creative in my own way. I don't necessarily come up with a lot of ideas and such but I think outside the box and work that way. I'm heavily into different arts when I'm not so sick like writing, drawing, painting, photography and music and I'm also very talented in each of those (jack of all spades master of none though). Unfortunately all those seem to have come to a halt and it's very hard to get myself to do any of them seriously as I'm having trouble lately.

StarStrike · Jun 29, 2014 at 10:51 AM

I voted yes, because none of my family are creative and none of them have a mental illness. Whereas I have been diagnosed as having psychosis and people keep complimenting me on my drawings. It's just an observation I've made. I consider myself to be highly creative. I love drawing, and writing stories.

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Sometimes psychotic Legendary Wise Elder Member Since May 2013 Location: Chicago Posts: 26,410 (SuperPoster!) 11 22.8k hugs given	Jun 28, 2014 at 05:23 PM #2 I voted yes because I really enjoy art as a hobby and a lot of people retired that along with their crayons.... __________________ Hugs!
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Atypical_Disaster Elder Member Since Mar 2011 Location: Nowhere noteworthy. Posts: 7,142 13 7,354 hugs given	Jun 28, 2014 at 05:31 PM #3 Sometimes psychotic, thank you for sharing! Okay seriously though, I consider myself creative yes but I don't think that's because of mental illness. I think it's just a part of my personality.
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Erti Princess Tutu Member Since Jun 2011 Location: Nowhere Posts: 7,912 12 2,894 hugs given	Jun 28, 2014 at 05:35 PM #5 I voted yes. Mostly because I think I'm more creative than the population in general.
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Anonymous100205 Guest Posts: n/a	Jun 28, 2014 at 05:45 PM #6 Voted no, I think I used to be in hypos though. But maybe I just thought that. But I used to be into music WAY more than I am now.
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