There was no pressure to speak or share your work, but I was so enthused by the images I’d taken and the insights they gave me that I began to feel like I wanted to share them and this helped my confidence
I have experience of anxiety and depression and was particularly struggling with social anxiety, which made it difficult to get out and about, try new things or spend time on my own in public places. Like many anxiety sufferers, I have a very active mind and find it hard to switch off. Having social anxiety can also make me hyper-vigilant and overly self-conscious. I worry that other people will see that I’m nervous or that I’ll say the ‘wrong’ thing or seem odd to them. Essentially, I’d love to have the superpower of being invisible!
I’ve done several workshops with Rebecca, which speaks volumes. I usually avoid group activities, but taking part in the workshops (initially online and then in-person) helped me to get used to the group scenario. There was no pressure to speak or share your work, but I was so enthused by the images I’d taken and the insights they gave me that I began to feel like I wanted to share them and this helped my confidence. Rebecca creates an environment within the group which feels very calm and accepting. I sometimes feel pressure to mask and pretend to be more sociable than I really feel but, during the mindful photography walks, I could just go off and be in my own world until it was time to meet up again. The other benefit of being in the group was realising you’re not alone in how you feel, as sharing images would often help people to open up. Social anxiety can be very isolating so that’s not something I’d usually be exposed to. My favourite part has been spending time in nature, exploring new places, noticing new things and finding meaning in the images I’ve taken, many of which have been very personal to me. There have been some quite profound moments where a photo I’ve taken has shown me a completely different perspective on things and other times when I’ve just been excited to notice something interesting in the world around me.
Mindful Photography has now become a tool that I can use whenever and wherever. If I see something that I think would make an interesting subject for a photo, my passion for it just takes over and I forget to worry about what other people might think! If I ever do have a moment of clarity about that, I just feel really proud that I’m doing something interesting.
It’s like having an additional layer of experience in your day-to-day life, which is really enriching. It’s opened my world up in so many ways because now I notice things I didn’t before and I’m more open to new experiences. I also use mindful photography to focus my mind and quieten my racing thoughts. I always have my phone on me, so I can use it to concentrate on taking an image and this helps me feel calmer. It’s very grounding in that way. Unsurprisingly, I’m still taking part in Rebecca’s workshops whenever I can, and I know mindful photography is something I will always be able to return to.
Key Takeaway – What is the one thing you would tell someone who was nervous or unsure about taking part?
Get curious and try it. If you feel anxious, just ask yourself what if something good came out of this? What if I discovered something new or found a new way of looking at things? At the very least, you can feel proud for just trying it. I owe a lot to my love of learning and curiosity so, if you can ever tap into that, do!
Mindful Photography UK 