Can Adult Coloring Books Help You Cope?
By Erin Sandberg
When’s the last time you colored? You know, like when you were a kid and you sat around a table, or laid on your stomach on the living room floor, and filled the pages of a coloring book? For some adults, it wasn’t that long ago.
The adult coloring book trend — that is, adults coloring in more complex, advanced coloring books — has been gaining popularity and exposure. And for many, it’s more than just a nostalgic trip to the days of Crayola crayons and apple juice. Studies tout its stress-relieving benefits, and even Amazon has the stats to show for it: Five of its top 20 best-selling books in 2015 were adult coloring books.
So, should you jump on the bandwagon? We say: yes. Even skeptics admitthat once they tried it, they got it. It’s exceptionally accessible for those with chronic illness, it’s portable and it doesn’t require expensive or fancy equipment. But the best part? Coloring offers benefits that those living with chronic illness might appreciate more than anyone.
When you’re coloring, you’re the boss.
Whether it’s a specific diet you adhere to, a treatment plan you follow or a set of regular appointments you always keep, chronic illness can sometimes force you to give up some of your autonomy. But when it comes to coloring, you are 100 percent in control. All the choices made — from what book to color in, what colors to choose, whether the picture will be bright and energetic or peaceful and light — are yours. And having a sense of control could lead to better health outcomes. A 2002 study suggests that autonomy is the key (as well as the end-goal) to patient participation during client-centered rehabilitation for disabling chronic conditions.
You’ll be (re)introduced to your creative self.
Whether it was a central part of your career or a focus of your leisure activity, expressing your creativity can sometimes get harder when living with a chronic illness. Symptoms or side effects from treatments may hamper your ability to create the way you once did. When it comes to realigning yourself with that creative identity, leisure activities (like coloring) can be useful, says Howard E. A. (Tony) Tinsley, PhD, former president and secretary-treasurer of the Academy of Leisure Sciences, who studies the psychosocial benefits of leisure.
“If you adopt a new leisure activity and it’s a good one for you, it fits who you are, then you can begin to develop that identity,” he says.
Even if you never saw yourself as “a creative” to start with, you might uncover a new creative identity you never knew was there, Tinsley explains. “What probably happens is that it was right for you in the first place. It was a latent identity that you hadn’t really realized was there until you had an opportunity to explore it.”
It’s a way to express the things you can’t really say.
Joy or loneliness, fear or peace. There are many emotions someone who’s chronically ill may cycle through, even in a single day. Sometimes, words don’t do the trick in explaining to others, or even yourself, what you’re feeling. But coloring can help. Women living with disabling chronic conditions reported in a 2003 study that participating in an art activity not only helped them take their minds off of their illness, but also allowed them to express their grief. And there’s no need to worry about being judged. No one is critiquing you, as one colorer said, of the activity’s freeing nature.
How To Get Started
Want to give coloring a try for yourself? Here are three tips to help you get into it.
1. CHOOSE A BOOK THAT FITS YOUR MOOD.
Feeling literary? Anxious? Cheeky? There’s a coloring book to help you dive into whatever world you seek the most.
2. DON’T SKIMP ON THE COLORS.
Some cheaper colored pencils may require more pressure to make a mark on the page, which can lead to an achy hand. AbleData, an organization funded by the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research, recommends Faber-Castell ART GRIP colored pencils, which feature a “soft-grip zone” near the base of the pencil that provide a little extra cushion. Prismacolor Premiere Soft Core pencils and Derwent Colorsoft Pencils are higher quality than your standard colored pencil and offer more vibrant colors that can be easily blended, and that don’t require muscle-builder strength to use.
3. MAKE THE CHOICE TO START.
DVR your favorite shows for later, and — if you can — put down your latest page-turner. Turn on some of your favorite tunes and get ready to get lost in color!
Article originally published March 25, 2016 on Chronicality.com.
