Stress and the Art of Zen Doodling

I am not a fan of stress; but lately, life has been piling it on in heaps.  And even though I think I have a great handle on everything, the effects of stress start to creep up in my health and in my emotional stability, so that I don't even resemble someone who has her shit together.  Most days I do have my act together; then enter the 3 months of health hell; and bad performance reviews at work; an on-the-job injury and finally an uncommunicative husband, and Stephanie becomes a mess.  A weepy-at-anything, soppy mess.

Some folks meditate for stress relief.  I'm not very good that that.  I can't focus my thoughts, and the harder I try, the more scattered my mind becomes.  So instead, I doodle.  More accurately, I Zen Doodle.

A Zen Doodle is a way of focusing on drawing repetitive lines and patterns using a pen and no eraser.  It is a way of focusing your attention onto drawing lines.  Because you are only drawing lines, it is not stressful; you don't know what your drawing will look like until its done.

What I like about the process is that it actually helps me focus on one thing.  I don't think about anything else, just what line I'm going to draw next.  It creates a "break" for me from whatever anxiety I'm dealing with.  Usually, I can complete a whole page in about an hour.  After I finish, I feel calmer and more clear headed.  And I have a drawing that I think looks pretty neat.  And sometimes creepy. Like, I've been into eyeballs lately, and that is... weird.

ANYWAYS, It is really easy to start this type of meditation, even if you think you are not artistic or a good drawer.  That doesn't matter in this type of art.  If you can draw a line, you can doodle yourself into meditation.  (Heh, heh.)

All you need to start is a pen, and a piece of paper.  Many people use small pieces of paper; they take less time to fill up.  I like to use my sketch books.  Sometimes I leave them unfinished, but most of the time, I like to fill up the page.

For me the process is something like this:

I sit on my couch by my lamp for adequate lighting.  I have my sketchbook,  3 different thickness of felt tipped pens and a pencil for shading.  It is usually quiet, or D is playing some video game-- there is nothing else to divert my attention.  I will either start with a doodle, like the radio in the above picture, or divide the page with a line.  Any type of line, thick or thin, wavy or straight, depends on my mood.  Once I've divided the pages into sections, I start filling in the sections with patterns or shading.  That's it.  I keep adding to the design until I'm calmer, or I finish and fill up the page.

That's all there is to it.  When I finish, sometimes my drawings look very complex and impressive.  While I like the results, I find the process most helpful.

What do you do to meditate?  How do you take a "stress break?"