When a character suffers emotional pain, the brain’s response is to stop the discomfort, and often this results in a coping mechanism being deployed. Whether it’s an automatic response or a learned go-to strategy, a mechanism helps them cope with the stress of the moment or escape the hurt of it.
But if the character develops an unhealthy reliance on that mechanism, problems will arise. Long-term, certain coping behaviors will impair their connections with others, their ability to achieve goals and dreams, and their ability to handle life’s pressures.
At some point, they must have an Aha! moment where they realize their coping method is holding them back and seek other ways to deal with stress. Namely, they’ll have to adopt healthier mechanisms that enable them to manage difficulties and ultimately have a happier future.
To help you write your character’s growth (or regression) journey, we’ve created The Coping Mechanism Thesaurus, which contains a range of coping mechanisms. The one we’re highlighting today can help your character better manage painful emotions and stress. Use this partial entry to show readers the character is choosing more productive strategies that will build resilience.
Creative Expression
Definition
Using art, writing, music, or other creative media to process emotion constructively. This may involve spontaneous creation to release volatile feelings or deliberate craft to explore and shape them.
What It May Look Like
Creating impulsively—messy, urgent, and unconcerned with the result
Focusing on craft to calm volatile emotions
Getting in the flow and losing track of time
Discarding or shelving a piece once it’s served its purpose, with no need to refine or share it
Weeping, raging, or giggling during the creation process
Internal Struggles
Wishing they could process events or express their feelings organically and in the moment like other people seem to do
Facing unexpected surges of emotions they weren’t prepared for while creating
Numbing out mid-creation because the feelings become too intense
Challenges That Will Test the Character
Being judged or dismissed for their creative choices or subject matter
Lacking the funds, time, or access to obtain the materials needed to fully express themselves
Responsibilities limiting or interrupting their time for creative self-expression
Basic Human Needs It Could Fill
Self-Actualization: Creation connects characters to their inner world, externalizing what they may not know about themselves.
Safety and Security: Channeling anxiety, frustration, or overwhelming emotion into art prevents those feelings from causing ongoing physical or relational harm.
To help you brainstorm your character’s responses to stress, visit our master list of healthy and unhealthy coping mechanisms.
Need More Descriptive Help?
While this thesaurus is still being developed and expanded, the rest of our descriptive collection (18 unique thesauri and growing) is accessible through the One Stop for Writers THESAURUS database.
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