When Inspiration Makes You Crazy, Ride that Spirit Pony!
10/29/21 •03m
For the past few months, I've been experiencing a surge of inspiration that is both super welcome and super problematic. And, since people like the personal touch, I thought we'd peep what's going on when I try to not look a gift horse in the pie hole even if it's 3am.
What is "the surge?"
"The surge" is a periodic, creatively charged experience I have, marked by a "surge" of inspiration. It's when writing, ideation, processing, and making connections are all happening way faster than I could ever keep up with. I'm assuming you've felt some version of this before. For me, these surges tend to last anywhere from a couple of weeks to a couple months. During these episodes, I do my best to capture and flesh out as much creative work and research as I can, often working on multiple projects simultaneously, writing upwards of twelve hours a day, sometimes getting up in the middle of the night to make a few tweaks or record an idea. It's basically a mild form of creative mania.
On the surface, and for anyone who's ever had creative block, this is the best problem a person could have. I have visions of my future self sitting on a beach sipping on a pina colada, feeling super stoked cuz he knows that when the surge ends, there's gonna be plenty of fun things to do: plenty of outlines and rough drafts to be tidied up. You're welcome future self. I've got you covered. 🤝
And, that's the great thing about periodic surges. Even when they pass, there's still interesting stuff to engage with. There's almost no such thing as "writer's block," because shifting to edit mode when the surge quiets down keeps me deep in the work, which in turn stimulates creativity, which in turn leads to future surges. This makes for a nice rhythm throughout the year: surge → edit → surge → edit → chillspiration.
The Problem
The problem is that the surge is no joke. It's demanding af, and keeps me in front of all the screens all day long, which results in a slew of minor social and potentially health-related issues. These are, of course, manageable if I'm paying attention. But, when I'm not, they have an effect. So far, I've noticed that unmediated surges can lead to:
- Forgetting to leave the house for multiple days
- Missing out on the nicest weather of the year
- Forgetting to eat
- Distractions when practicing yoga
- Working straight through pray, chant, and meditate time
- Losing sleep because I wake up to capture an idea and/or have restless dreams about editing text
- Having low-grade, I hope it doesn't mean anything, feelings of dementia where I forget what day it is when I look up from the screen (this makes me nervous)
- Heart palpitations that I equate to the increased screen time
- Periodic ringing in my ears that I relate to the increased screen time
- The potential for these last two to lead to anxiety, which, thank baby Jesus, isn't too big of an issue these days
Some of these may seem minor (yoga distractions), but others are a little disconcerting (physical stuff). So, while I'm grateful for surges of inspiration, I realize that they need to be skillfully managed if I'm not to turn into a pasty, wild-eyed, anxiety-filled meat mannequin.
So, What's to Do?
Inspiration is quickened spirit. It's fast, always on a move, always looking for an expression. Unfiltered, a quickened spirit can get us into all sorts of trouble. Giggling at a funeral, not allowing others to speak, writing all day without eating. Our spirit isn't really concerned about social norms or our health. But, we are! And, it's our self—our sense of who we think we are and who want others to think we are—which directs our spirit, channels and filters it out into the world.
The self is the means by which we channel a quickened spirit that may otherwise talk without ceasing around a dinner table into asking questions, making a toast, giving a warm goodbye. The self is what converts getting up and writing all day without eating into getting up, practicing yoga, making lunch for later, and then sitting down to write for a few hours.
The goal with any surge of inspiration is to learn to ride it, rather than let it take you for a ride. And, in weeks to come, we'll look at how to do just that! 🌴
Bob is the author of Sitting with Spirits: Exploring the Unseen World In the Margins of Christianity; The House of I Am Mirrors: And Other Poems; Acupressure For Beginners; and The Power of Stretching. You can stay up to date on his doings and goings by signing up for his weekly email “The High Pony: Really Good Insights for Living an Inspired Life.” bobdoto.computer for everything else.