Anxiety “Anxiety is the enemy of the artist.” It was Jeff Koons who said that. If you feel anxiety creep up on you, push it out of your mind. Recite this statement as a mantra if you need to. There is a stereotype of the artist being an anxious, tortured soul. People seem to think an artist’s dark emotions is what fuels the art. This is not true. It can be used as inspiration, but the artist is only able to make art during moments of reprieve from the darkness. The happier the artist is, the more productive he or she can be. If you have trouble falling asleep at night, then you have anxiety. Insomnia is caused by state of mind. If you’re being flooded by worries as soon as you lay down to sleep, that means that you’re not dealing with them properly when you are awake. You are trying to ignore and repress them, but anything you bury will resurface, especially as you enter your subconscious mind state. Meditation is the best way to deal with these innermost anxieties. It is a hovering state between conscious and subconscious– the same state you enter right before you fall asleep. Since you are not trying to fall asleep while meditating, it acts as a bridge between the two mental states and a platform for spiritual growth. It is the same state as hypnotic mind, which is why some people solve problems like smoking through hypnosis. When you meditate, you are confronted with yourself. Your innermost thoughts and worries are pushed to the forefront. That is why many people are resistant to meditating. It can be scary and difficult, but meditation is the most direct and effective way of dealing with those emotions. Even if you deal with your problems on a conscious level, and even if you meditate, any deeply repressed anxieties will resurface in dreams. In that way, dreams are more real than reality. They provide insight into your innermost self. Use dreams as a tool to help you figure out what your anxieties are.