How Coloring and Creativity Can Improve Productivity, and Reduce Anxiety & Pain
Free Coloring Book! Get the download now.
Free E-Book Download Here
Don’t you miss being a kid?
We are all way too busy nowadays. I miss having free time and losing myself in creativity. But what if not scheduling free time could cause a genuine lag in getting important things done? Turns out, starving ourselves of creativity can ramp up our pain receptors, keep us locked in ruminating thoughts, and elevate our anxiety.
Creativity = Better Pain Management
Harvard Health recently published an article on using creative activities like art therapy to manage overall pain. They found an improvement in perceived levels of pain in patients who used techniques such as “reducing the perceptions of pain” when working with a certified Art Therapist. This technique uses an hour-long guiding exercise to view colors, lines, shapes, and forms based on your perception of the current pain you are experiencing. The art session helps you to reframe your feelings about the pain you are experiencing. You explore the creative process and how it relates to your pain.
“Art therapy helps lower the perception of pain by moving your mental focus away from the painful stimulus. It is not simply a distraction, but rather a way to teach you how to relax and alter your mood, so the pain doesn’t control your emotional state”
Matthew Solan, Harvard Health Publishing, July 12, 2018 Get the article
Creativity = Less Anxiety
Ever notice yourself doodling during a difficult, anxious, stressful conversation? Practicing art can release pent-up emotions bubbling below the surface. When you participate in artful activities, you interrupt ruminating thoughts, create a positive distraction, and induce a calmer presence within yourself. Art therapy seems to be able to help with panic disorders and generalized anxiety disorders. If you suffer from milder forms of these conditions, then releasing some of the stress through art could be beneficial to your overall happiness, work productivity, and creativity in other areas of life. Here’s an article from PsychCentral on the benefits of Art Therapy for Anxiety.
Creativity = Increased Work Productivity
Sometimes those random doodles might mean things – but let’s don’t get too Freudian here. Doodling may increase memory retention especially when you are listening to a boring lecture or are participating in an audience and you are trying to stay awake. But doodling is really about finding a creative outlet for your hands when your mind might be struggling for conscious attention and focus. Harvard Publishing has this short article on using those random squiggles to get important work done, and maybe just be able to remember those facts tomorrow.
Watch this Video for a Fun Art Project – Painting Feathers!
Gratitude Feathers (2-minute video)
Mountain Energy Wellness Coaching 
Leave a comment