Creativity is linked in many complex ways both to general human wellness and to our sense of well-being. The more people do creative things simply because they love to do them, the greater their sense of satisfaction and joy.

The nature of the relationship between creativity and mental illness is by no means “settled science.”

There are many casualties of the time pressure-cooker most of us find ourselves in on a daily basis. But one of the biggest casualties is creativity.

A person need not be an artist per se to be creative, and a person need not have a particular talent for the more commonly recognized forms of artistic expression in order to be creative.

Creativity is a natural outgrowth of our capacity to use prior knowledge and experience as well as innate talent to envision and fashion new and novel expressions. As such, it can be nurtured and developed.

This new series of articles will explore what creativity is and isn’t; its relationships to art, innovation, imagination and artistic expression; and the importance of creativity as an essential element of inspired living.

Laughter actually triggers beneficial physical changes in the body, strenthening the immune system by decreasing hormones that compound stress and increasing the presence of antibodies that fight infections.