What would be different about your relationship to yourself if you thought of creativity as a place you can go, rather than simply what you make? In this spiritually-imbued conversation, author, artist, and musician Shira Erlichman offers gem after gem of creative wisdom and inspiration, talking with host, therapist, and fellow artist Carter Umhau about what the creative process has to teach us about being human. Shira also shares how writing poetry became a vehicle through which to befriend the medication she takes for Bipolar Disorder, and how it has taught her to engage past and future versions of herself. If you’ve ever wondered how creativity can support your mental health or your own becoming, this is the episode for you.
.
Also in this episode:
- how to engage the desires you have for your life when you’re scared
- the trippy experience that inspired Shira’s new novel
- the Audre Lorde quote and Buddhist meditation that Shira returns to again and again
- what quantum physics and IFS have to do with each other
- how creativity can help us divest from the narrative imposed by capitalism and Empire about what life is supposed to look like
.
.
Shira Erlichman is the author of Odes to Lithium (Alice James Books, 2019) which won the Publishing Triangle’s Audre Lorde Award for Lesbian Poetry and is the writer-illustrator of the children’s book Be/Hold: A Friendship Book (2019). She was a finalist for the Lambda Award, a Silver Medalist for the Nautilus Award, and the recipient of a MacDowell Fellowship. She has been a returning guest host on The Slowdown. She runs In Surreal life: an Online Global Creativity School and is a Visiting Faculty Mentor at the Randolph MFA. Look forward to her debut novel Tangerapple (Knopf, 2027), and her second book of poetry, IS (Alice James Books, 2028).
.
Stay in touch with Shira Erlichman:
- via her website: www.shiraerlichman.com
- @Sheer_Awe on Instagram
- through Shira’s Substack
.
.
.
This podcast is hosted by Carter Umhau--a therapist, artist, and writer.
If you’re interested in receiving support from Carter in a therapeutic, coaching, or consulting capacity—or you just want to connect!—please reach out at hello@carterumhau.com I can’t wait to hear from you!
.
Keep in touch with Carter and get a deeper look into the podcast, it's guests, and Carter's work:
Subscribe to the How To Be Alive newsletter: https://carterumhau.substack.com/
Carter’s website: https://www.carterumhau.com/
Get on the list to hear about Carter’s next classes and events: https://carterumhau.myflodesk.com/kwt3u8rfle
.
.
.
Original music by Aaron Davidson
Editing by Hans Anderson
.
.
DISCLAIMER: The opinions and views expressed in this episode and are not intended as mental health advice, nor as a replacement for therapy. Please seek mental health support if needed!
