When did you last pick up some colouring crayons and colour in a picture? It might have been a few decades or so ago for me. I am not talking about a doodle or helping your kid with their colouring in project, I mean really doing a colouring in project from start to finish… on your own. I have helped my children colour in when they were little, but I have not done one all by myself for such a long time. So, for my ‘Something Different’ project today, I decided to do just that. I looked for an image that pleased me on the internet, printed it out, borrowed my sons’ colouring pencils and got on with the exercise. There was a moment that I thought I might get bored, but that soon fell away, and I thoroughly enjoyed the experience – and this is why…
Before beginning on this task, I decided to do a quick google search to see if there were any benefits to colouring in – for adults! And guess what – there are!
Why is colouring in good for adults?
- Colouring has the ability to relax the fear centre of the brain – the amygdala.
- It induces the same state as meditating by reducing the thoughts of a restless mind.
- This generates mindfulness & quietness, which allows your mind to get some rest.
- It can reduce stress and anxiety.
- It trains your brain to focus.
- It can help mental & emotional issues.
How cool is that! I am sure there are many more benefits to this simple exercise, but these are the ones I found with a quick search.
Did I feel any of these benefits? Perhaps. After a few minutes I felt like I was really getting into it and felt myself relaxing. I also felt myself zone out from everything that was going on around me, so it certainly felt like a bit of a meditation for me. Also – because it is almost a childlike thing to do, I realised a soft smile was playing on my face – not a frown, an actual smile, and realising this made me smile even more.
So, there we have it – colouring is good for adults too! And I am very happy that I chose this as my ‘Something Different’ for today. Let me know if you decide to give this a try and how it made you feel.