Charcoal, Compulsion and Creative Recovery with Artist Liz Atkin

This episode of Creative Health Stories is a little different. Host Laura Bailey takes the podcast outdoors to the Whitstable seafront for a conversation with artist Liz Atkin.

Liz shares her lived experience of dermatillomania (compulsive skin picking disorder) and how charcoal drawing became both a recovery tool and a powerful creative practice. Together they explore how creativity can transform personal health and support others in clinical and community settings.

It’s a candid and inspiring conversation about vulnerability, play, and the therapeutic potential of creativity.

Key Points:

• Liz’s journey from theatre and dance to charcoal drawing.
• Using creativity to refocus compulsion and anxiety.
• The role of play and flow in improving wellbeing.
• Workshops with NHS staff and the importance of creative breaks.
• How creative health programmes face challenges in the current NHS context.

Links:

• Liz Atkin: lizatkin.com
• Breathe Arts Health Research: breatheahr.org
• Horsebridge Arts Centre, Whitstable: horsebridge.org.uk

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