Can adult coloring books help with anxiety?  Yes.  Coloring can also help with depression and is used therapeutically by doctors and clinicians.

This is great news in our family! Now my husband has a good reason to color his beautiful, and intricate mandalas and designs at his desk at work.  He’s keeping his mind sharp and healthy! No boss can complain about that.

Studies show that it can decrease anxiety and encourages living in the moment.

“Groundbreaking research in 2005 proved anxiety levels dropped when subjects colored mandalas, which are round frames with geometric patterns inside. Simply doodling, though, had no effect in reducing the other subjects’ stress levels.

Just like meditation, coloring also allows us to switch off our brains from other thoughts and focus only on the moment, helping to alleviate free-floating anxiety. It can be particularly effective for people who aren’t comfortable with more creatively expressive forms of art. “

– Kelly Fitzpatrick, The Daily Burn, CNN.com

It’s not just a kid thing anymore.  Coloring has become a hobby of everybody from preschool to the retirement home.  It is even being offered as an alternative to meditation.

Note:

If you are interested in trying them out, then the one pictured below is inexpensive and very popular.

Click here to read reviews on Amazon.

Source: CNN.com