Craft as Therapy

If you’re active on Instagram, you might have seen the “craftastherapy“-hashtag. Crafters/makers from all over the world use this particular hashtag whenever they post their wonderful projects on Instagram.

The lovely Mandy of RedAgape Style & Design-blog started this some time ago, searching for like-minded crafters/makers that someway or other craft/make as a way to relief stress or even for more serious reasons like illness and hardship.
Should you want to read a little bit more, this is where you’ll want to go.

A while ago Mandy added the Instagram account @craftastherapy, a lovely feed where pictures are shared that can be found under the fast growing 7200+ craftastherapy-hashtag, as well as quotes and wise words that we can all do with every once in a while.
It’s a truly awesome, supportive, encouraging and inspiring community, and I feel very much at home there!

The craftastherapy-Instagram account is hosted by a different moderator each week, which – in my opinion – only adds to the beauty of this account. Everyone looks at things from a different angle and adds a personal touch, which is great to see.
I’m extremely honored to be one of the 12 moderators, and excited at the same time since next week will be “my” craftastherapy-week!

Now this is a long introduction to tell you I’ll be needing some serious “crafting as therapy” in the days/weeks/months to come ……
Our 14-year old son Carter traveled to Canada last Thursday for a 2,5 week vacation with my in-laws. The plan was for him to enjoy the company of his/our relatives, spend quality time with his cousins – who, like he, are avid archers – go fishing, swimming, hiking in the beautiful Rocky Mountains and whatnot.

That all came to an end quickly, when he was in a bike accident Saturday night, only two days into his vacation …..
He broke his left collar-bone, and fractured two bones in his left foot, one of which is totally shattered and the other one in “just” 4 or 5 pieces.
Surgery was needed and performed Sunday night and he now has screws and pins inside his foot and a frame on the outside that will have to stay there for 3 months, during which the two bones (part of the five “ossa tarsi” in each foot – more here) will hopefully heal completely.

How odd it may seem, crocheting has been helpful to calm the mind, relief stress – as always, and I’m glad that I have a go-to craft that I enjoy as much as I do and has this effect on me.
From the @craftastherapy-community I know there are a lot of crocheters/crafters out there who experience the same thing when crocheting/crafting – and isn’t that something to be thankful for!
And now for some serious “crafting as therapy” – crochet hook, here I come!

Love,
Marianne xx