The sheer act of using your imagination and expressing yourself through a creative endeavor can help relieve stress, lift your mood, sharpen your mind, and bring a plethora of additional benefits that enrich your life. Creativity is so good for our minds and bodies that an entire discipline of art therapy has been developed around it.
When we engage in creative pursuits, it’s common to experience immediate physiological changes that improve how we feel. Our heart rate decreases, our breathing slows down, our muscles relax, and we feel better overall. Our amygdala, the part of the brain that controls the fear and stress response, also calms down. This is critical, since less activity in the amygdala helps reduce the
effect of negative emotions, allowing us to let go and stop focusing on our problems for a while. Stress hormones, like cortisol, also decrease. In fact, one study found that engaging in an art project for just 45 minutes can significantly lower stress hormones in the body.
Here are some of the other proven health benefits of pursuing creative activities:
Improved concentration
Creativity helps you focus and concentrate on the task at hand, which is a useful skill to have whether you are studying, working, or managing a home.
Increased confidence
Thinking creatively and finishing a new project boosts your confidence. When you step back and enjoy what you have created, it provides a sense of accomplishment. Interestingly, this increase in confidence helps you practice even more creativity, because many types of art forms, such as performing music or drama, require the ability to confidently stand in front of an audience.
Physical dexterity
Creativity can provide physical health benefits, such as retaining fine motor skills to ensure you can continue performing everyday tasks with ease as you age. Creative activities, such as knitting, painting, drawing, or playing a musical instrument, require hand-eye coordination. These actions engage small muscle groups in your hands and fingers, helping to maintain dexterity and prevent stiffness.
A sharper mind
Engaging in creative activities stimulates multiple areas of the brain, promoting better memory, focus, and problem-solving skills. Additionally, creativity encourages innovative thinking, which can help you grow in other areas of life, personally and professionally.
Resilience
Trying something new, failing at it, and persisting helps teach you to be more resilient by not taking yourself too seriously.
Deeper social connections
When you create and share with others, you can build connections with family, friends, and even strangers that help you feel part of a community. Sharing—either the artistic process or the final product—brings the work to life.
A broader perspective
When you are exposed to the arts, you experience new cultures and ideas that help you see the world differently. By opening your eyes to multiple points of view, you can become more knowledgeable and empathetic.
A sense of meaning
Creative hobbies help give you a sense of purpose, which is a significant factor in finding happiness. You also experience positive personal growth when you learn a new skill that allows you to express yourself.
Sandi Schwartz is an award-winning author and journalist who writes about nature, wellness, gardening, and lifestyle.
