@ChaoticArtistHello!
I heard we can get some tea here? Or do we bring our own?
Just feeling a bit overwhelmed and blah today. A little more than usual.
Parents are going to see a lawyer about the narcs today, I'm not feeling well so getting panic attacks about losing at least two of my senses - hearing and vision - but don't want to tell them because they've got that legal stuff on their minds. Exam this weekend that I'm not at all prepared for, exhibition next weekend that I would like to be better prepared for. Getting any decent sales is almost impossible. People keep demanding stuff for free and say that my work/effort/time are useless. I can deal better with it this year than I could up till now, but it's still difficult at times, especially when I'm spiralling.
Sometimes I feel like I should just give it up and sell all my art equipment, but then what else would I do. Industry isn't hiring experienced workers - laying them off in thousands, in fact. I've got a contract under consideration right now, but it's taking far too long. No romantic prospects even though mum's really pushing for marriage and my spinsterhood is affecting us socially (culture yay!). Just really scared about the present and the future.
Silver lining is that I at least earned enough from sales over the festive season to buy my dog some decent winter stuff.
Thank you for the thread, @Chita.It's nice to have someone listen even if they can't do anything about it. I've lost most IRL 'friends' because they're fed up that I've always got something going on (thanks to the narcs). I'm supposed to only be available to help them.
Real Life friends can't be relied upon, sadly.
They say they are always there for us, but in the end, they can't fix our problems for us and they can't always be there at that moment we need them.
Its harsh to say it, but it's true and all of us find that out in the end.
Obvs those of us in here can listen, and offer advice which will hopefully help get things calmed down.
Sorry your mum is pressurising because you are single.
Regarding your health concerns, you should tell them.
I don't know what this legal stuff is that you mention, but I'm sure it's stressful and understand why you don't want to add to the parents stress by teling them about your health - but in my experience it's best to get all the tit out in the open and deal with it all atvthe same time.
Waiting until one load of tit is over before you deal with more tit just drags everything out and makes the problems bigger.
I hope the exam went ok. I hope your exhibition is a success.
Regarding people saying your work/effort/time is useless.... this is tougher because art we create is a part of us. Insult our art, you wound us deeply.
Remember this, for someone to insult you, you have to respect their opinion in the first place.
And often criticism of that kind is often professional jealousy.
There is no harsher critic than ourselves.
I don't know what area of the arts you work in but, if you have put out a finished piece and it met the standards you set yourself, then who cares what others think.
If they hate it, either it just isnt their cup of tea, or they are jealous or they are just mean.
And just be honest with your mum. Tell her your current state of spinsterhood isn't your ideal situation, and being alone does upset you but her constant pressure just makes you feel ill.
And ask her to stop.
Time to be direct.
Look after yourself.
Good luck.
My mother will be mortified; her old-fashioned views are one should only be in the news for your birth, marriage and death announcements. I have low level Aspergers and PTSD from a long term ICU stay; I would do anything to avoid this RN. 
she knows it makes me ill, but worrying about me makes her ill and her illness trumps mine so....
Exhibition was nice in the sense that it was quite relaxing and I had fun, but only made the cost of the table back. I need to sell way more to survive.
Maybe my son's fart button toy will convince them? 
