Writer's Block: Real or Hoax?

At a recent conference I attended, one of the authors who spoke made the bold claim, 
           

"I DO NOT BELIEVE IN WRITER'S BLOCK! YOU WRITE, OR YOU DON'T."

                                              (maybe not verbose but pretty close, by my recollection)

And it truly was a powerful moment. There were great cheers and much celebration because, in this light, writer's block was something writers created as an excuse not to write and so the solution was simple: just push through it.

At first, I thought that this idea was as good as they come. But as I slowly sunk into a writing funk (not giving myself permission to call it writer's block since that myth had been firmly debunked), I began to rethink my hasty disdain for the concept of writer's block.

And today, I am reclaiming that nefarious Block! Why?

Because I need something by which to label those times when the act of putting words to page is akin to sewing through rhinoceros hide.

Because I need to define those moments when the muse is screaming for space and inspiration. Let's face it, writers, we have a tendency to suffocate our creativity by hammering "habit" into our lives so ruthlessly (i.e. write for X hours/day, write X words/day, write X scenes/day, etc.).

Because sometimes I need to diagnose myself with a bit of Block to give myself permission to do something else.

Of course, it's up to each writer to determine for his/her own self whether writer's block is real or hoax. For me, it's real. For you?