In the past few years, colouring books have become a popular trend, and many people are surely buying them and sharing them as gifts. In this article, we will explore how colouring can be beneficial to your mind and what makes it so popular.
Like meditation
When we do anything with our hands, the attention moves from thoughts to actions, and we concentrate on what we do, letting go of toxic thoughts. This is why handicrafts, knitting, painting and other related activities are so stress relieving. It can also be related to sports, when the whole body is engaged and the attention is moved from the thinking mind to the actions of the body in the present moment.
Reducing anxiety
Anxiety can be caused by many reasons, and one of them is negative thoughts. The good news is that we can only think one thought at a time, and when we switch from negative thoughts to the thoughts of “which colour do I choose? Where do I colour now?” we tend to cool down and relax, and disconnect from our worries.
Pleasurable activity
Since the outcome of colouring is easily predictable and it is difficult to mess up while colouring, it becomes an easy and pleasurable activity, and relaxes the brain. We do not need to worry, we just need to be fully present and flow.
Reconnecting with your inner child
When we think of childhood, we often have good memories of safe and secure environment. The truth is, in childhood we received most of the conditioning that our mind lives off right now, and no matter useful or not, one can work on his/her conditioning. Going back to your inner child, nurturing your inner child and allowing yourself to play is a healthy practice that will also take good care of the adult in you.
Martina from Slovakia has one of such colouring books and this is what she says about them: “Anytime I come back home, it is there, so I can colour something and it is connected to my comfort zone and precious self space. Once we had a colouring session together with my friends, it actually took the whole weekend and it was pretty relaxing. Did you know that there is even colouring app for your phone? It helps with concentration.”
“I don’t consider the colouring books as art therapy; I consider the colouring books therapeutic, which is not the same thing.” says Drena Fagen, an art therapist.
There have been studies that show that it is more beneficial for people to create their own artwork rather than colour inside the designs that someone else has created. It indeed sounds more reasonable to unfold your own creativity and allow yourself to be a creative being. When you are too afraid to make the first step, I believe colouring a postcard or colouring a book can be useful too.
Have you ever engaged in this activity? Do you have colouring books at home? We are happy if you share with us in comments.