Yes, Adults Colour
If you are reading this and thinking, of course adults should colour. This will be further validation for you. If you are an adult who assumes that colouring is only for kids. This is especially for you.
Colouring is Art Therapy
We know that art therapy has amazing benefits, right? Then it only stands to reason that colouring would be beneficial, as it is a form of art. Colouring is one of the first and simplest ways many of us created our first artistic masterpiece. I am pretty sure your masterpiece was displayed on a fridge or a wall in your home. A friend of mine framed her little ones colouring art, making their works part of their home decor. Can you imagine the pride and satisfaction a young person would feel having something they created on display? Hold onto that thought and feeling as I break down the reasons why you should colour or at least try it.
1. Connect to your inner child, a simpler time.
Remember I asked you to hold onto that feeling of satisfaction, young people experience this when they are proud of a job well done. By simply sitting down with some crayons, coloured pencils or your utensil of choice, you are automatically transporting yourself to a simpler time. That connection to your inner child or younger self brings pause and calm.
2. Colouring is therapeutic.
It’s healing, a treatment of dis-ease. One of the first things any medical doctor will tell you if you receive a serious diagnosis, is to slow down and focus on your well-being. Colouring is a therapy. Why not be proactive. We should not wait to be forced to rest and take care of ourselves.
3. Meditation, Mindfulness.
Colouring helps to put you in a meditative state because it creates the environment to be in the moment and not think of anything else. You can focus on the sound that is created when you rub a crayon on the paper. I find that to be a calming sound. When you are meditating you are being mindful, focusing your thoughts and energy on the present moment. Being conscious and aware of what you are doing, the colours you are using and the sounds and thoughts you are creating. If you find it hard to meditate and turn off your brain, colouring can be a great way to practice training your brain.
4. Lower stress and anxiety levels.
Facts are facts! Adulting ain’t all it’s cracked up to be. It’s all hype, right?! The stress and often anxious feelings that come along with managing your life and the lives of others if you’re married and or have children, can be heavy. We are not coached on how to be adults. I feel like adult coaching starts and ends in kindergarten, maybe grade 1 and 2. Then there is this unspoken assumption that once you are a junior, you know everything you need to know about yourself and how to interact with others. This is when stress and anxiousness start. Using colouring to escape the responsibilities of adult life for just a little while can make a huge impact. Channeling your nervous energy into something creative will shift your thinking and increase your ability to cope with whatever life throws at you. If you are saying to yourself, “I don’t have time to colour.” Make time! This is your self-care we are talking about. Maybe colouring will not be your actual thing but it could be one of the things you try on your self-care journey. The most important thing is to be intentional about taking time for yourself and creating moments of peace in your life.
5. Supports Positive Thinking.
Positive thinking and positive self-talk are extremely powerful. Some may say it’s just a gimmick and that it’s “trending” right now, but there is actual physiological science behind the benefits of positive thinking and positive self-talk. That’s right saying nice things to yourself (preferably out loud) supports normal human function. I can’t go deep into it right now but understand that consciously or unconsciously you are programming your brain to be attuned to the things you say and think, good or bad. As we know we focus on the bad stuff way more, which is why we must be extremely intentional about saying, thinking positive things and reading and watching beneficial, affirming content. You’ve heard the saying you are what you eat, right? Well, you are what you say and think to yourself too. When you are reading positive quotes and messages while you are colouring you are programming positivity into your brain and that helps to quiet the negative noise. Be consistent with your positive thinking because it can take 3-5 positive thoughts to neutralize one negative.
6. Stimulate creativity.
I think you can practice being creative. I believe that everyone has it within them; we simply express it in different ways. That is what makes colouring so great you can express yourself any way you want. Use whatever colours you want. Colour outside of the lines if you want. Make it conservative or eccentric. Just have fun with it, allow your inner creativity no matter how big or small you think it is, to come out. If you are telling yourself that you don’t have a creative bone in your body, please go back and read 5.
As a colouring artist myself, I think colouring is a perfect selfcare practice. Make it a zen experience with a glass of your favorite beverage, some snacks, a scented candle an affirmation colouring book and whatever colouring utensils you like. Try it and see, then reach out and let me know how it goes.