Wed January 6, 2016
By Kelly Fitzpatrick, Daily Burn
Story highlights
Coloring has therapeutic potential to
reduce anxiety, create focus or bring about more mindfulness
Like meditation, coloring allows the
brain to switch off other thoughts and focus
Coloring books are
no longer just for the kids. In fact, adult coloring books are all the rage
right now. And while researchers and art therapists alike have touted the
calming benefits for over a decade, it's childhood favorite Crayola that's
gotten adult coloring books some serious grown-up attention. The famous crayon
makers just launched a set of markers, colored pencils and a collection of
adult coloring books, Coloring Escapes, last month.
And though the
first commercially successful adult coloring books were published in 2012 and
2013, the once-niche hobby has now grown into a full-on trend, with everyone
from researchers at Johns Hopkins University to the editors of Yoga Journal
suggesting coloring as an alternative to meditation. Here's why you might want
to open a page and
say ahhhhhh.
Art Therapy, Adult
Coloring Books and Your Mental Health
According to the
American Art Therapy Association, art therapy is a mental health profession in
which the process of making and creating artwork is used to "explore
feelings, reconcile emotional conflicts, foster self-awareness, manage behavior
and addictions, develop social skills, improve reality orientation, reduce
anxiety and increase self-esteem." So basically, it's similar to good old
therapy. (Don't think you need therapy? Here's why you
should take a mental health day now) Yet art therapy is not only
about learning and improving yourself — it's a means of personal expression,
too.
However, it is
important to note that using an adult coloring book is not exactly the same as
completing an art therapy session. "Coloring itself cannot be called art
therapy because art therapy relies on the relationship between the client and
the therapist," says Marygrace Berberian, a certified art therapist and
the Clinical Assistant Professor and Program Coordinator for the Graduate Art
Therapy Program at NYU. And while art therapy was first practiced in the 1940s,
the first research on using coloring as therapy is generally believed to have
only begun as recently the mid 90s, according to Art Therapy: Journal of the
American Art Therapy Association.
The Health
Benefits of Adult Coloring Books
Despite the fact
that coloring and art therapy aren't quite the same thing, coloring does offer
a slew of mental benefits. "Coloring definitely has therapeutic potential
to reduce anxiety, create focus or bring [about]
more mindfulness," says Berberian. Groundbreaking research in
2005 proved anxiety levels dropped when subjects colored mandalas, which are
round frames with geometric patterns inside. Simply doodling, though, had no
effect in reducing the other subjects' stress levels.
Just like
meditation, coloring also allows us to switch off our brains from other
thoughts and focus only on the moment, helping to alleviate free-floating
anxiety. It can be particularly effective for people who aren't comfortable
with more creatively expressive forms of art, says Berberian, "My
experience has been that those participants who are more guarded find a lot of
tranquility in coloring an image. It feels safer and it creates containment
around their process," she adds.
How to Get Started
Want to fill in
some pages? Keep in mind, if you're dealing with significant mental or
emotional issues, art therapy is going to be more effective than coloring solo.
But for those who just need a hobby to help them chill out, these books could
be the ticket. As Berberian puts it, "I truly believe that people should
be engaging in activities that make them feel restored."
According to
ColoringBooks.net, adults should skip the crayons and go straight for the
colored pencils (precision is everything when it comes to tuning in). And
Crayola has a complete guide that shows how to take your tools up a notch by
blending colors, shading and adding highlights and lowlights to your newfound masterpieces.
Now get scribbling!
http://www.cnn.com/2016/01/06/health/adult-coloring-books-popularity-mental-health/index.html
No comments:
Post a Comment