Remember the game, Operation? Using  tweezers, a player has to pull out the white plastic game pieces representing different but well known health risks. If the tweezers hit the side then the man’s red nose blinks and a buzzer sounds.

Remember the pencil you had to pull out of the man’s wrist? The injury was called writer’s cramp. But there are actually many more common health concerns when it comes to writing. Aches and pains in the neck, shoulder, back, arms, fingers – all from over use and abuse. The basic message is: sit right, take breaks, and listen to your body. Christina Katz covers Staying Healthy in this week’s ezine, The Prosperous Writer.

But I want to talk about a different kind of health.

Mental health.

After reading Elana’s post on fear, and then reading Casey’s post on fear, and then reading all the writers chiming in not only to encourage but express their own fears and self-doubts, it made me realize something.

Almost all writers/artists experience fear and stress. It comes part and parcel with being a writer. And I think it’s wonderful when writers share these kind of emotions on their blogs, because it helps us realize we’re not alone. Helps me realize I’m not alone.

But we can’t let these emotions rule our life or our writing, or we’re not going to make it very far. We all experience the ups and downs. Our emotional health affects our physical health.

Then I read this article on laughing. And I realized that I can’t give in to the negative thoughts. Somehow, I have to fight them. Express them and then let them go.

And then I read this encouraging post by Jody Hedlund. When I’m down, I can’t give into it. I must pull myself out of the miry clay, the pit of despair, the fear that binds –  and I must persevere with hope and faith.

My faith in God plays a big part in how I deal with negative emotions. But it’s not the only way. Sometimes, I eat girlscout cookies. Sometimes, I talk with friends. Sometimes, I cry. Sometimes, I just push forward and keep writing and living.

How do you pull yourself out of negative thought patterns? How have you found hope when dealing with disappointment, stress, or fear?