WFLA Bloom TV Featured Zebrina: How Creativity Helped Me Reconnect With Myself
During my conversation with Bloom host Amber Freeman, we painted together while talking about something that has completely transformed my own life:
The healing power of creativity.
Art gives us a place to slow down, reflect, and reconnect with ourselves.
For me, that's where everything began.
My Healing Journey Began Long Before Art + Healing
In 2019, I was diagnosed with endometriosis after years of living with chronic pain. Receiving a diagnosis brought relief, but it also marked the beginning of an entirely new chapter of healing. Following surgery, I found myself learning how to listen to my body differently while processing the emotions that came with such a life-changing experience.
Around that same time, I was invited by the“Me Too: UNWANTED COLLECTIONS” art exhibit to create artwork about my own healing journey from trauma.
I made two paper-mâché wombs out of anatomical sculptures.
One represented the parts of me that still carried pain, layered with words and memories I had been healing from. The other represented the ongoing journey of healing, filled with brighter colors, affirmations, and hope for the woman I was becoming.
That experience completely changed the way I viewed art.
For the first time, I realized creativity was a language for expressing experiences that felt difficult to put into words. Shortly afterward, I bought my very first watercolor set. I wasn’t necessarily planning on becoming an artist. Painting simply brought me so much joy.
Creativity Became a Practice of Presence
Over time, watercolor became more than a hobby. It became one of the ways I processed difficult emotions, slowed my racing mind, and reconnected with my own creative voice.
One of the biggest lessons I've learned is this:
Art doesn't have to be perfect to be meaningful.
In fact, the moments that taught me the most often came from letting go of perfection altogether.
That's why I often tell women:
You don't have to create something beautiful.
You simply have to give yourself permission to create.
Why I Created Art + Healing
As I continued painting, I realized I wasn't the only woman craving creative space. Again and again, I met women who shared similar stories.
Women who hadn't painted since elementary school. Women navigating burnout. Women healing from grief, illness, perfectionism, career transitions, motherhood, or simply the pace of everyday life.
Many believed they "weren't creative." Yet after spending an evening painting together, I'd often hear the same words:
"This is exactly what I needed."
Those moments became the inspiration behind Art + Healing.
Today, Art + Healing creates art, resources, and experiences where women can slow down, reconnect with creativity, and build meaningful community through watercolor painting, reflection, and conversation.
Whether we're gathering in nature, inside a women's art gallery, at a flower farm, or during a corporate wellness workshop, the goal remains the same:
To remind women that creativity belongs to them.
Creativity Isn't Reserved for Artists
One of my favorite moments during the Bloom interview was talking about a misconception I hear all the time:
"I'm not artistic."
The truth is, creativity isn't reserved for people who paint professionally.
It can look like:
Watercolor painting
Journaling
Photography
Gardening
Writing
Cooking
Music
Dancing
Any practice that allows you to express yourself and be present
Creativity isn't about talent. It's about connection.
Bringing Creative Wellness Into Communities
Today, Art + Healing has grown into much more than my own painting practice. Through our offerings, we're creating opportunities for creativity to become part of everyday life.
Paint Gatherings
Small-group experiences where women paint, journal, reflect, and connect in beautiful spaces throughout Tampa Bay.
→ Explore upcoming Paint Gatherings
Painting Conversations
A storytelling series where I paint alongside women artists, founders, and leaders while discussing creativity, identity, healing, and personal growth.
→ Watch Painting Conversations
Corporate Wellness Workshops
Creative wellness experiences designed for organizations, founders, leadership teams, and companies looking to foster well-being, collaboration, and creativity in the workplace.
→ Learn about Corporate Wellness Workshops
Connection Cards
A deck of creative prompts designed to inspire journaling, painting, meaningful conversations, and moments of reflection.
A Gentle Invitation
If you're moving through a season where life feels overwhelming... You don't have to become an artist. You don't have to make something worthy of hanging on a wall. Maybe your next step is simply giving yourself permission to create again.
One brushstroke. One journal page. One small moment of joy.
Sometimes that's where healing quietly begins.
Thank you to Amber Freeman and the WFLA Bloom team for creating space to have this conversation and for helping share the message that creativity can support connection, mindfulness, and emotional well-being.
I'm grateful to continue this journey alongside such an incredible community of women. And if our paths haven't crossed yet... I'd love to paint with you someday.
