LOCKDOWN DOODLES 2020

One of the now-accepted methods of reducing stress, anxiety and other mental disorders is to doodle. This art therapy method requires no training or special skill. Everyone can do it; indeed, we all doodled as youngsters. It requires little more than drawing a bundle of lines on a piece of paper with a pencil and then developing it by making changes that start to give it an appearance that looks more artistic. One can start with a subject on the mind before trying to commit to paper. One becomes immersed in the process as it develops thereby taking the mind off a worrying mode. Many become very absorbed in this activity, and that’s when it really becomes strong therapy. The author has strong bipolar disorder; doodling has greatly helped in relieving the downs, and this is especially true when in 2020 the Covid-19 pandemic made the depressed state even worse. The production of doodles during the lockdown years was surprisingly high with an average of a new one every second or third day. The author hopes readers will like the doodles and attempt to draw some themselves when feeling down.