World Mental Health Day: Taking out time for yourself and doing things that bring joy are important for mental health. As the world continues to struggle with pandemic-induced stress, loneliness and anxiety, self-love has assumed even more significance. While WHO’s guidelines also suggest you to eat well, sleep on time, and do regular exercise, it is also important to develop some hobbies to find some fun time in an otherwise mundane life.
Research shows has shown that having a hobby is linked to lower levels of depression and may even prevent depression for some. People with mental health issues lose interest in daily activities and taking up some hobbies like gardening, painting, writing or photography can be beneficial for mental health
“Hobbies are meaningful experiences that not only add fun and happiness to mundane routines but also have a substantial impact on our mental well-being and emotional health. Recent researches have shown that people have hobbies rarely suffer from stress, anxiety and low mood. Hence, adding hobby to your routine helps us keep our mental, physical, and emotional health fit,” says Prachi Kohli, Counselling Psychologist at Kaleidoscope, Dr. Bakshi’s Healthcare.
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Here are few hobbies suggested by Kohli that one can practice in their daily routine:
Yoga: A lot of people are turning to Yoga and not without a reason. Yoga is a holistic practice that keeps your mental as well physical body aligned. It can boost the flow of happy hormones like serotonin, dopamine, oxytocin and endorphinand reduce your stress.
Playing an instrument: Playing tabla, guitar, casio etc can reduce stress, anxiety and depression. It can be a great mood changer that can increase excitement, energy and happiness and reduce symptoms of depression, fatigue, anger and confusion.
Cooking: Making your favourite food in a mindful way can help alleviate stress and enhance our mood. There are people who have benefitted mentally from baking and trying out different recipes in their free time.
Photography: Unplugging from technological world can help you see different perspectives of the environment. Taking up photography can have a meditative effect on an individual. Clicking pictures and connecting with nature and outside world soothes you from inside out.
Drawing and painting: Indulging in creative activities like painting, sculpting or drawing can lower your stress levels and promote mental calmness. It is an excellent distraction from your everyday life and is quite relaxing.
Writing: Penning down your thoughts on a piece of paper or diary or writing a story or poem, has a therapeutic impact on senses. It is also a way to self-reflect and silent the chattering mind.
Gardening: This is another way to connect with nature. It also improves concentration and attention to finer details while also instilling patience.
Dancing: Dancing has more benefits than you imagined. It helps in the expression of self, socialization, and mood enhancement. It also improves your posture and flexibility, lifts your mood and ease anxiety. Besides it can also sharpen your mind.
Benefits of taking up a hobby
* Reduces anxiety
* Decreases psychological distress
* Helps to gain perspective
* Identifies one’s interest
* Helps to have a recreational time
* Self-exploration
* Relaxation
