HEALTH + WELLNESS
ART FOR Wellbeing
ART IS ONE OF LIFE’ S GREAT PLEASURES, BOTH FOR THE ARTIST AND FOR THOSE ADMIRING THE RESULT OF THEIR WORK.‘ ART’ AS A PRACTICE OVERALL – WHETHER YOU CHOOSE TO DRAW, SCULPT, CRAFT, OR SOW – IS ACTUALLY GOOD FOR THE SOUL, AND IT’ S GOOD FOR YOUR HEALTH TOO; CREATING AND ADMIRING ART RELEASES SEROTONIN, WHICH IS KNOWN AS THE‘ HAPPY HORMONE’ AND MAKES US FEEL BLISSED OUT AND CONTENT. OVER RECENT YEARS, THERE HAS BEEN A HUGE UPSURGE IN UNDERSTANDING AND APPRECIATION OF THE IMPACT THAT TAKING PART IN THE ARTS CAN HAVE ON OUR HEALTH AND WELLBEING, SO WE’ VE DELVED IN TO TAKE A DEEPER LOOK AT WHAT IT MEANS TO BE AN ARTIST AND HOW IT CAN IMPACT YOUR HEALTH OVERALL. by Polly Humphris
The first rule of art? It’ s never too late to start exploring your inner Picasso. There are no upper( or lower) age limits; there are no restrictions when it comes to knowledge, skill, or talent; and there is no‘ wrong time’ to pick up a new, invigorating hobby, or to reignite a love of art that has tailed off due to life and other commitments. If it is something you want to do, then you must do it – just‘ doing’ something is nourishing for the soul and will keep your mind sharp too.
The second rule of art? Although not everyone can be a professional artist, everyone can certainly get involved and have a go at creating art. The secret to this, and the thing that many people forget or don’ t realise, is that you don’ t have to have any kind of artistic talent at all to simply create. It’ s the process that counts and it’ s the process that releases a life-affirming hormone hit, so it’ s the process itself that will make you feel good – not how polished the end product looks.
So, now you’ ve talked yourself into giving it a bash, what are the benefits of art on our wellbeing and how does it work? Herein lies a misconception – contrary to popular belief, you don’ t have to work with an art therapist to get a therapeutic benefit from doing art. We’ re all born with an innate desire to express ourselves and creative expression, be that through dance, acting, painting, song, or one of the myriad of other creative endeavours that‘ art’ encompasses, benefits our brains and mental health to make us happier and healthier people.
Art for stress relief. On average, a person has 60,000 thoughts a day, of which about 95 per cent are exactly the same – just thinking about that is as mundane as the fact itself, but activities like painting, drawing, sculpting and taking photos, are not only rewarding, as you get to see a physical end product, but relaxing too. Once you’ re immersed and fully‘ in the zone’ in your artistic activity, your stress levels will drop and you’ ll naturally begin to feel
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