Natural Therapy or connecting with your children

Before they had the more intricate books, I've just been colouring in kids books for well over a decade now.

I have coloured in several pictures from an adult colouring book, and it did force me to focus more on what I was doing due to the intricacy.

I've used Art Therapy with my students, especially those with special needs like autism and behaviour issues. It does wonders to help calm them down and express their feelings in a way that feels safe for them. Often times, I get more information from their drawings than what they will verbally tell me. I once discovered that a child was experiencing violent trauma at home through their artwork, and this led us to seek help for him. Not every case is this dramatic, but you'd be surprised how art can let a person put down their defences and start to heal, whether it be for minor or major situations.

Drawing and coloring is a familiar form of communication, especially for children and it's usually the most comfortable way for them to open up about many things that may be on their mind. Just make sure to never judge or negatively criticize their artwork since it is such a personal journey for them.

The same concept applies to teenagers and adults. Art therapy, even simple coloring or doodling can soothe a stressed mind. I've noticed the trend of Art Journaling, Scrapbooking as well as the Adult Coloring Books in the past few years and I'm glad more and more people are incorporating art into their lives as it can be very beneficial for one's mental health.

@wonderwhatif That's really great that you were able to feel less stressed as a result of colouring. Did you also feel less anxious about going out in public after this activity? If so, this could very well be a strategy/relaxation technique you can use in advance to help you become more comfortable and prepare for these situations. It could also work in conjunction with other cognitive behaviour strategies used to treat agoraphobia.

For instance, how about creating a vision board made up of your own drawn images or magazine cut-outs of yourself feeling safe, happy and calm in public situations? Assess your fear and ask yourself whether it really warrants you feeling anxious about it. Then, draw yourself or make a collage of the way you would look like in public without the anxiety. An example of this would be: If you're afraid people will judge you, imagine what it would be like if you just didn't care what they thought. How would your experience look like? How would you look like? In essence, you're visualizing yourself without the fear that's holding you back.

I hope this helps you cope and if you need any other tips feel free to ask. Good luck! :)