Lets Scroll Less and Create More Art!

Eight years ago, my life was falling apart.

I was a young physician, fresh into practice. I worked days and nights. But exhaustion crept in. Sleep became restless. Focus slipped. Small mistakes followed. Things spiraled.

I felt restless. Clueless. Frustrated.

Close friends noticed. They saw the stress and told me to take breaks from work. They were right. But I thought I was already doing that.

The moment my work ended, I opened social media. I scrolled through updates from friends. I smiled.

But that smile was the problem.

That smile was a delusion. It poured fuel on my stress fire.

This dark phase became the start of my writing journey. Many of you have asked how I manage to write. Let me break it down.

I was trapped by Raktabija.

In Hindu mythology, the Goddess Durga battled a demon named Raktabīja. He had a terrifying power: every drop of his blood that hit the ground spawned a new demon, equal in strength.

The warriors attacked harder. They struck deeper. But with every wound, more blood fell. One demon became thousands.

Sound familiar?

My stress had drowned me in cortisol, the hormone that kept me restless and frustrated. Every social media post gave me a dopamine hit. That delusional smile. But it never let my brain rest. It kept cortisol high. Peace, happiness, contentment, all became distant dreams.

How did Durga finally win?

She didn’t strike harder. She changed the game. She became Kali, who spread her tongue across the earth to catch every drop of blood before it touched the ground.

I needed that kind of shift.

Social media multiplied my demons. I needed the opposite.

The Concert That Changed Everything

My epiphany came at a local music concert.

I watched the artists perform. Their smiles were different. Deeper. They were lost in creation. That look of contentment, I didn’t have it. Social media never gave it to me.

The peace on the face of someone who creates art was missing from my life.

Then I found the science to back it up.

A 2016 study from Drexel University, published in Art Therapy, measured cortisol levels before and after art-making sessions. The title: “Reduction of Cortisol Levels and Participants’ Responses Following Art Making.”

The finding? A 45-minute art session significantly reduced cortisol in 75% of participants. Skill level didn’t matter.

This was my ‘Kali Maata’ moment.

Social media wasn’t my solution. It was breeding more demons. I had to shift from consumption to creation.

How I Started

I had already begun reading, whatever I liked or friends recommended. I loved it.

Then I made a small twist.

I started jotting down ideas from books, articles, podcasts. I sat with those ideas and wrote whatever came to mind. No plans to publish. The Drexel study said skill didn’t matter. I wasn’t writing for likes or views.

I was writing for peace. For happiness.

Three Years Later

Life feels more beautiful now. I’m not that restless, frustrated person anymore. And if the science holds, my cortisol has probably returned to healthy levels.

But this isn’t just about me.

Life is stressful for all of us. We all need an escape, it’s natural. But we reach for smartphones and social media. And it makes things worse. The science is clear.

We need to create. Daily. Without worrying about skill or outcome. Just for the process.

It doesn’t have to be just drawing or painting. Sing in the shower. Dance in your room. Write. Cook. Garden. Collect things. Stitch. Whatever sparks something inside you.

We doctors always tell you to meditate. But let me say this: creating art can be a more engaging alternative.

Why I Write

Writing is my remedy for stress. Unlike the constant ‘cortisol fuel’ of social media, putting pen to paper (or fingers to keys) brings me a sense of calm and clarity.

And when people ask how I find the time, I say this:

“When you have a strong ‘why,’ the ‘hows’ and ‘whens’ take care of themselves.”

Let’s scroll less and create more this year.

Here’s to a happier life!

~ Amit Hartalkar.