About a year ago I shared the stories of several people who were inspired by illness. I’m so happy when I come across others who have found a new passion as a result of the terrible things that have befallen them. Illness sucks, but we’ve got to be able to make something positive out of it, or we just live in misery.
The last few months I’ve seen my friend Nick share some amazing spoonie artwork and it was my desire to share that artwork with you that inspired this post. But, Nick isn’t alone. I’ve been blessed to get to know others who have been inspired by their illness to create amazing things, and even to create a place for other spoonies to sell their amazing things.
The Artists
Nick Lutes is a friend of mine and Fibro Warrior who I interviewed a couple of years ago. I’ve watched him over the years as he’s made a transition similar to my own. It’s been a journey, but out of that journey have come some beautiful things.
Nick says that while he always loved to create things and loved Legos as a child, as he got older he was just too busy to think about fun projects. However, illness has given him the time to do just that.
Creating art and spoonie items is my best distraction from pain. It also gives me a sense of satisfaction from creating things that bring happiness to others and with the spoonie items, raise awareness by being a conversation starter. “
Nick says that his illnesses definitely limit the amount of time he is able to be productive. Despite trying to work ergonomically and efficiently, his hands and upper body muscles become fatigued quickly. However, he says that his ability to be ambidextrous when using hand tools nearly doubles his productivity some days.
Creating art and spoonie items is my best distraction from pain. Share on XDonna Falcone is a spoonie that I connected with on Twitter. Donna says that she’s always loved art but always felt like creating it was something for other people. She didn’t really feel that she had any artistic talent. Then, several years ago when she got sick, it was photography that stepped into help her separate herself from her illness.
My art leads me into a mental and emotional place that is completely open and free of illness. Share on XSerious illness can plunge a person deep into a habit of over identifying with the illness – at least that’s what happened to me. When I became very ill, I had to focus intensely on my symptoms and research because none of my doctors were figuring this out. After my diagnoses, I over identified with my illness and found it hard to see where Lyme and I parted ways on the inside. When that happened, the world became very dark and I felt hopelessly lost. It was the visual world that pulled me out of myself. My camera was my motivation for finding beauty in the world during a very dark and dismal time. From my sofa, to the yard, to a neighborhood park, photography gave me a new way of seeing things – everything – light, motion, color – everything. I think that new way of seeing is what led me into creating art. That, and my sister, who kept sharing interesting techniques and materials she thought would go well with poetry I’d been writing and pairing with my photos. She was instrumental in leading me into the burst of amazing discovery, and color in motion, that began last summer.”
I often use my painting time as meditative practice and so it can become like a prayer. Following the paint and flame (I use alcohol inks and fire a lot) – I do what they want me to do, which I know sounds a bit odd, but this is the way it is. When I am in this state of mind, there are no mistakes, only directions – wherever the work leads me, I follow. This has been hugely important to me because I can fall into perfectionism and controlling behavior with regards to my illness. Creating art has somehow helped me worry less, trust more, and let the journey unfold. It is helping me accept that my journey will be ongoing, and that’s okay as long as I stay with the moment I happen to be in.”
Donna says she’s never really thought about how her illness impacts her ability to create art. She says if she’s tired she’s just tired. She’s stopped worrying about whether the tired is because of Lyme, or Fibro, or something totally ordinary. She says that creating art has helped her learn to separate her mind from her body and closer to her soul.
Karen is the founder of Conscious Crafties, a website dedicated to helping chronically ill crafters market and sell their artwork and crafts. Karen says that after becoming sick in 2011 she found her way to various support networks. She noticed that many of us turn to crafts to help distract from our illnesses and to feel useful again.
Seeing all that untapped talent inspired her to create a community where everyone could showcase their work, in one place, and give people a way of creating their own business. She says it also provided her a way to feel useful again, and to use her skills to help others. Conscious Crafties is about empowering us all to be successful through our crafts, tell our stories and meet new like minded friends who understand our struggles.
I’m also hoping it plays a key part in changing the way disabled/sick people are viewed by the world. We can still contribute and are incredibly talented!!”
She said that after years of thinking about it creating this community, she finally built it in honor of her friend, Sam, who she met because of their shared illness and love of crafts. Sam’s fight with Gastroparesis and POTs ended in October of 2014 and Karen knew then that she finally had to make their dream a reality and give other spoonies hope for the future.
Crafting allows me to enter another reality where my focus is taken away from the pain. Share on XCrafting is my get out of jail free card. I enter another reality were my focus is taken away from the pain and constant sickness into a magical world of creation”
Sonia is one of the many crafties on Conscious Crafties. She lives with CRPS type 2, which thankfully has not affected her hands. She loves to make jewelry with her daughter. She started off doing needlework (cross-stitching and knitting) until a friend introduced her to jewelry-making and she says she’s never looked back. She says her illness keeps her bedbound but she is able to stay connected with people and stay active through her jewelry-making.
Does her illness impact her ability to craft?
Doing the craft work doesn’t make living with my disability any easier at all.. There is no way you can switch your mind off from the pain 24/7. I do the craft work mainly because I enjoy doing it, but also because I just can’t sit here and not do anything.”
Aside from being limited by pain, she is also limited by being bedbound. She can only work on as much as her small hospital table will hold and she has to rely on others to help her with getting materials and putting things away.
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