When Walls Become Doorways - REBECA RIOFRIO CEO OF ART IN FUSION TV, AT THE CREATIVE WOMEN INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE IN CYPRUS

Last month i gave a  speech at the CREATIVE WOMEN CONFERENCE IN CYPRUS. The venue was the Elysium Hotel in Paphos and this conference was organised by CREATIVE WOMEN ORGANISATION founder  Olga Balakleets  and their official patron the first lady of Cyprus Ms Andri Anastasiade.

The topic I shared  was very personal to me and a true example of  life experiences in an  unconventional upbringing. How to transform pain into creativity.

About my speech study_ When Walls becomes doorways: 

There's little doubt that trauma can be very painful, often leaving deep emotional and psychological scars long after the stressful experience has passed. But can there be positive factors to this?

In recent years, psychologists have become increasingly interested in the positive life changes that come with highly stressful life events, such as :

-being diagnosed with a chronic or terminal illness,
- losing a loved one

- or sexual assault.

This phenomenon has been referred to as post-traumatic growth, and researchers have discovered five particular areas of growth that often spring from adversity: 

• ·         INTERPERSONAL RELATIONSHIPS
• ·         THE IDENTIFICATION OF NEW POSSIBILITIES FOR ONE'S LIFE
• ·         PERSONAL STRENGTH
• ·         SPIRITUALITY
• ·         APPRECIATION OF LIFE

A possible impact of growth in these fields intensified “creativity”. Indeed, some of the most eminent creators of all time have noted overcoming adversity, using their negative experiences to inspire and motivate their work. Systematic studies have also shown a high preponderance of harsh early life events (e.g., early parental loss), psychological disorders (particularly among artists), and physical illness are among eminent creators.

What about the rest of us? Can we all channel our trauma in creatively productive ways? Absolutely! Various forms of creative engagement, including art therapy and expressive writing, have demonstrated therapeutic benefits. 

Researchers have argued that creative expression offers therapeutic benefits because they increase engagement and flow, catharsis, distraction, positive emotions, and meaning-making. And now recent research also suggests a link between post-traumatic growth and creativity.

I personally had to deal with the death of a absent father and also domestic violence relationships - events that impacted my life and put me into dark places  of depression an anxiety until the  transformative adverse experiences deliberate forms of reflection. 

The impact of perceiving new possibilities for one's life was not surprising considering that this area of post traumatic growth has been linked to openness to experience, which is a strong predictor of creative engagement and achievement. 

Adverse experiences can act as a "psychologically seismic event," capable of shaking up one's deeply held beliefs about oneself and the world. 

People who experience seismic traumatic events proceed to form new beliefs by engaging in cognitive processing, such as rumination and reflection, through which growth and wisdom as well as depreciation can occur.

Let's be clear: these results do not suggest that adversity is necessary for creativity. 

Nevertheless, these findings are important, considering that most people will unfortunately experience at least one adverse life event at some point in their lives. The silver lining is that these individuals can use their traumatic experiences to heal, grow, and flourish creatively.

To more information on the conferences and topics please visit their site on : www.creativewomen.cowww.creativewomen.co