We need to talk about being tired, down, overwhelmed, burnt out, lonely... all those feelings that can come from the stresses and strains of everyday life including running your own craft business. This isn’t something many of us talk about and we fear this might resonate with many of you. Sometimes your personal life isn’t going so well. This inevitably affects your performance being self-employed or freelance. This stresses you out, leading to becoming overwhelmed, worrying so much that things won’t get done, so they don’t get one, stressing you out more... it’s a vicious circle.
The mental stress of being the sole and singular responsible person can be far more stressful than actually doing the work. It’s a constant stream of decisions: should I take that order? What’s on trend that I should be making to keep up? And ‘for the love of sprinkles!’, I haven’t posted on social media for over a week?! All of that noise and negativity going on in our heads very easily leads to burnout and a ‘caker’s block’; think writer’s block, but for cake decorating. It’s absurd to expect that you can go forth and create wonderful things on the outside if you’re feeling lousy on the inside!
Many of us are one-person bands; it’s a lot for just one person to do and often lonely. we are often so lucky to have the support of loving family and friends, but despite their kind offers of help and advice, there’s not that much they can actually do... it has to be you. And that can become seriously overwhelming. Most importantly, you must fight on through the fog and acknowledge that whatever ‘it’ is, ‘it’ can be done. You have done ‘it’ in the past and you will do ‘it’ in the future. The fog will pass and the other side will become clear.
Should it be that the other side is not becoming clear, please get help. There is absolutely nothing to be ashamed of if coping seems impossible. Visit the doctor, a therapist or call one of the helplines listed below and just know that no one is ever alone; you do not need to suffer in silence. Speaking out and seeking help is a massive and difficult step to take, but once you do, it will make the difference.
We're very concerned with doing our utmost to help our readers across the board, from talking about mental health to how to make the most of your niche, so do have a look at some of our other issues for some more helpful articles like this.
Helplines:
Mind
(0300 123 3393) www.mind.org.uk
Rethink Mental Illness
(0300 5000 927) www.rethink.org
Samaritans
(116 123) www.samaritans.org.uk
