Bring Color Back Into Your Life

by Katie Cardner

As a young adult, I am constantly torn between two different identities: being young, and being an adult. Life seemed so much better when my days were spent playing hide and seek with my friends, taking a midday nap, and drinking as much apple juice as I wanted. Most of m favorite activities I did as a child would be frowned upon as an adult. Luckily for me, recent studies are showing that there is one childhood activity that has major health benefits for adults, too.

Over the past couple of years, there has been a huge emergence of adult coloring books. Although coloring may feel like fun and games, it has actually been proven to have significant benefits to our health. Here is a breakdown of what coloring can do for you:

Trip Down Memory Lane

Coloring has been shown to decrease stress levels in adults in many different ways. The act of coloring reminds our brains of simpler times. Relating back to childhood allows our brains to related to a time when we experienced much less stress.

Improves Brain Function

Coloring is a great activity for children and has become all the rage for adults! But does coloring help you? See how adult coloring may benefit you.

When we color, we are focused on two different things. One of which is staying in the lines (or at least trying to). This function allows the left side of our brains to do analytical thinking. On the other end, choosing different colors to make patterns and designs taps into our creative thinking, which is accomplished by the right side of the brain. A study published in 2013 found that using both sides of our brain simultaneously can improve the connection between both hemispheres. It has been noted that evolutionists like Albert Einstein had a stronger connection between both hemispheres of his brain tan the average man.

Helps Develop Meditational Tendencies

Meditation has been known to have significant health benefits for thousands of years. To put it simply, mditation is the art of doing nothing; lettting your brain be completely still. Coloring helps us tap into that practice. When coloring, we are only able to focus on what is in front of us, blocking our all other thoughts and distractions.

Express Yourself

Coloring allows us to relax. We are able to express our moods through the colors we choose, which allows us to understand our emotions. Many therapists today require patients to spend time coloring before starting their typical treatment.

So pull out your colored pencils and act like a kid again! Not only will you have a great time, but you may just start to feel more colorful yourself.