Are you looking for a new way to introduce some purpose and fun into your life? Believe it or not, the answer you’re looking for could be waiting for you at the hobby store. How do hobbies help mental health?
How Do Hobbies Help Mental Health?
Most of us don’t take our hobbies that seriously. After all, hobbies are a fun way to pass the time, but we don’t look at them as something to prioritize. However, mental health research suggests that hobbies can give us a lot more than a fun art or craft project to decorate our walls. Hobbies can help our self-esteem, give us purpose in life, and allow us to explore our creative sides as adults. How do hobbies help mental health?
Hobbies Give You a Newfound Purpose in Life
If you’re struggling with something like depression or anxiety, it can make you feel adrift or disconnected from the life you used to enjoy. That’s why some psychiatrists will prescribe hands-on hobbies like gardening or art to people with mental health issues. A good hobby can literally help you get out of your head, and give you the motivation you need to re-engage with the world through the things you’re passionate about. Plus, the way hobbies engage the pleasure centers in our brains means that your hobby will actually give you good feelings every time you engage with it, which can help you keep going even when your motivation is low.
Hobbies Improve Self-Esteem
A good hobby can do more than just get you motivated. Everybody goes through periods where their self-image might not be as good as they want it to be. Hobbies require us to learn lots of new skills, and doing them successfully can give you something to be proud of. Imagine the sense of pride and accomplishment you felt last time you did something great. Didn’t it make you feel good about yourself? Hobbies can give you that feeling all the time.
Hobbies Can Make Your Life Better in Unexpected Ways
Some people think hobbies are a waste of time. However, those people might not be thinking about the ways that hobbies help us build skills and abilities that benefit us in other parts of our lives. For example, a physical hobby like speedwalking can help you improve your physical fitness. Hobbies like playing music or doing crossword puzzles engage the logical side of your brain, which can strengthen your cognitive abilities. Social hobbies like board games can help you make new social connections and improve your communication skills. Artistic hobbies like arts and crafts have been positively linked to preventing dementia. Even if your hobby has no other grand purpose, you can still bring a lot of fun and joy into your life just by making time to “play” as an adult.
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How do hobbies help mental health? They keep you engaged with life, they give you something to be proud of, and they open the door to a lot of other positive things. Why not head to the hobby store and see if a new activity catches your eye?
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