Multiple researches have depicted the efficacy of art as a form of healing therapy. In real-time scenarios, art can work as a fighting strategy to ward off anxiety and help arrest the cognitive decline.
Anxiety is a notorious foe that one can keep battling for a lifetime.
With an increasing number of cases where chaos and uncertainty of mind are wreaking havoc, the usual approach is to seek medical help. However, not all anti-anxiety medicines offer fast relief. Some also carry a fair share of side effects.
Take Benzodiazepines for instance. As psychoactive drugs, they seem to work alright but are addictive and can have detrimental withdrawal symptoms.
Luckily, there are still a handful of alternate routes including the likes of running, walking, and meditation. And while they are all excellent choices for overall health, some people don’t seem to enjoy them just to beat anxiety, like meditation that demands greater focus, commitment, and practice to achieve perfection.
In comparison, art can offer a quick, inexpensive remedy to sort out the odds in a jiffy.
Read on to know more.
Why Arts Anyway?
Since the 1900s, art as a therapy has helped people cope with a myriad range of mental health issues.
No wonder, even celebrities fighting depression, like Hollywood star Jim Carrey for instance, resorted to painting as one of the ways of seeking freedom from Prozacs.
The faint sound of dragging the pencil across the paper, or the embracing of colors on the canvas can work wonders to kill your ruminating thoughts. As you stay focused on art, your mind smartly eludes confronting your thoughts, something you wouldn’t have done otherwise.
Over time, the unwanted thoughts without finding a window to linger, start to drift away. In essence, regular indulgence turns your “me-time” into a fruitful hobby, a passion, offering ultimate peace of mind.
Here are a few doings to get you started:
Start with simple shapes – Circles, squares, triangles, or even abstracts are a great way to start doodling.
Mandala coloring – If you find it too hard to sketch or doodle, coloring pre-drawn Mandalas (a Buddhist meditation symbol) with geometric patterns can be a great exercise to do away with anxiety symptoms.
Commit to a fixed number of hours every day – Unplug yourself from your electronic devices and just paint away! You will be amazed to see how you end up smiling on your own when you finish your masterpiece. In due time, your anxiety will take a backseat.
Never judge yourself – The idea is to have fun. There’s no rush, nothing to worry about, let the colors do their thing, your job is to find the flow, find your rhythm section within, and trust the process. Eventually, everything will fall back to place.
Do you suffer from anxiety too?
Have you ever tried drawing or painting to alleviate your symptoms?
If not, there’s no better time to give it a shot, because there’s nothing precious than doing things for yourself, to be happy, that matters a lot! You can connect with specialized art therapists and other wellness experts at ManoShala.
By
Ipsit Roy, Artist, Writer, ManoShala