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Now I dislike anything to do with sewing/knitting/etc, and coloring bores me/makes me tense, so obviously finding the right �busy hands� work is key. But it sure explains a friend �needing� to dig in her garden. (No thank you.)
Painting, watercoloring, stamping, blending, *die cutting* (on a Genesis, not manual, which hurts), does it for me. And alcohol inks, though that�s more visual/mesmerizing. And even washing dishes. Not drying.
Great article! I am wiggly and figgity, like a little kid, all the time. Making stuff helps me focus that energy. Experimenting with new materials and inks and playing with new tools keeps my mind busy. Win, win, all around. When I am feeling anxious I make a list of all the do-to's then walk forever on the treadmill at the gym. Always works for me!
Mary Beth
I can relate to this article. I love housework, like washing dishes, folding laundry, cooking, cleaning, etc. I also love exercising - I run and take classes but I also walk and ride my bike when running errands (I live in a small town with sidewalks and a true downtown). When I get anxious about something, moving and being active helps tremendously.
This is why I get concerned about my husband's job. He is a senior IT manager at a national retailer. Yes, it pays well and I have been blessed to be able to stay at home the entire time with our three daughters (now 13, 15, and 17) but I fear my husband's physical and mental health has been the price. He is tired constantly, no matter how much he sleeps; he always aches; he feels like he is just going through the motions. He enjoys working with his hands, doing yardwork, fixing things, etc. and he loves to run, which he does at lunchtime and on the weekends. When he was a computer programmer, he enjoyed that, too. But the managing stuff he does now, not so much. I have seen the negative change over the years. I have encouraged him to change what he does, to go out on his own, etc. but he feels a responsibility to provide at a certain level. I told him, "You married a creative woman of faith who can squeeze pennies from a rock and who has an accounting background - God will always show us a way!". I just want him healthy and content!
Thanks for the article, Beth! I need to send the link to a few of my children so they can know it's not just me prodding them on, lol...
Mary Beth - Keeping my hands busy helps me focus, period. Energy, thoughts, emotions - all get more focused when I'm doing/making something...
Nicole - I totally hear you on worrying about your husband. I'm playing the same game over here. DH was in construction for years in a hands-on way (mason, carpenter, handyman) and now does QA for hotels, where he just observes and reports. I've noticed a decline in sharpness and an increase in stress - two very un-good things! He knows it, too, and is actively looking for physical work again. Also, one thing that I know without question is that any time I've taken a job "for the money", it was never worth the blood, sweat and tears that inevitably ensued and the expected money wasn't there, anyway.
It's nice when we get more validation for what we love to do anyway, isn't it?
Nicole, (cnsteele) I can relate to what you said. No children, but with what you said about your husband. Mine too, was over worked and over stressed and he put 100% effort into his job every day. Hard to unwind and relax and just have down time, mostly because he was working 60-80 hours a week. On June 13th, his place of employment closed the doors. I had been stressing about it, but I have seen a massive change in my husband for the good. He looked for other jobs and has been offered a job at every place he has applied, but the hours are still insane and I would rather have a healthy happy husband than one that is in an early grave. Like you, I can squeeze pennies from rocks and make diamonds from coal. Paul had said in scripture that he had learned to live with much and little, and we have done the same. So when my husband lost his job, we have gone into living "little" mode and we are enjoying it. He also appreciates my creative side more than he ever has. hahaha I really hope and pray that your husbands health does not suffer as a result of his job. Hopefully, at some point in time, he can slow down a little and enjoy life with his family, but in the mean time, just keep praying for him. patty
Nicole, (cnsteele) I can relate to what you said. No children, but with what you said about your husband. Mine too, was over worked and over stressed and he put 100% effort into his job every day. Hard to unwind and relax and just have down time, mostly because he was working 60-80 hours a week. On June 13th, his place of employment closed the doors. I had been stressing about it, but I have seen a massive change in my husband for the good. He looked for other jobs and has been offered a job at every place he has applied, but the hours are still insane and I would rather have a healthy happy husband than one that is in an early grave. Like you, I can squeeze pennies from rocks and make diamonds from coal. Paul had said in scripture that he had learned to live with much and little, and we have done the same. So when my husband lost his job, we have gone into living "little" mode and we are enjoying it. He also appreciates my creative side more than he ever has. hahaha I really hope and pray that your husbands health does not suffer as a result of his job. Hopefully, at some point in time, he can slow down a little and enjoy life with his family, but in the mean time, just keep praying for him. patty
If I could give you a huge, real-life hug right now, I would! Thank you so much for your wisdom!
We had our children fairly young, so my husband keeps saying that once our youngest is in college (or another life path post high school), he wants to move in a new direction (he feels the sense of financial responsibility of providing for our 3 girls will have eased by then). That is less than 5 years away and we just turned 43. My husband is amazing, though, in that he knows it is unwise to wish away today, so he really is making the best of it given the responsibility he feels to stay on to provide for us!
Nicole, I certainly understand the responsibility your husband has towards his family!! That is so admirable in todays times. One more bit of a suggestion, you probably already do it, but when your husband leaves for work out the driveway, be standing somewhere you can see his vehicle leave and pray for God presence to be surrounding him every second of the day. You would be surprised at how many times my husband came home from work and saying that he would feel a renewal in his energy or that something just fell right into place and it was usually because I know that God heard my prayers. They go a long way in the preservation of a loved ones health. And he will appreciate knowing that you are praying for him. hugs, patty
I have a friend who is often anxious and has ADHD. She needs to be doing something with her hands, whether inside or out. She said it both focuses her and calms her, so brings some kind of needle work with her if she’ll be sitting and waiting, or she gets anxious.
Yet for some people - me! - doing that kind of hand work makes me tense and therefore anxious. Words with Friends helps if I can get connected to wifi. : )
Just interesting how peoples’ brains are similar yet so different.
True, that! Apparently Zentangle got its name because people find it kind of "Zen" and get into a zone doing it, but the repetition makes me borderline insane...
True, that! Apparently Zentangle got its name because people find it kind of "Zen" and get into a zone doing it, but the repetition makes me borderline insane...
Spot on example. I can sense my shoulders wanting to tighten and rise up just thinking about Zentangles. I�ll get to Zen by stroking a cat or dog...
Spot on example. I can sense my shoulders wanting to tighten and rise up just thinking about Zentangles. I’ll get to Zen by stroking a cat or dog...
OMGosh! I adopted a super-feisty calico this Spring with catitude-overload! But I'm fully aware that petting her when she needs her laptimes, etc. has been an immeasurable stress reliever/peaceful feeling time, even a help through huge grief. But at the same time, I truly do require regular time with my inks, papers, & stamps. Dang! Can't really take either when those snail-slow waiting times pop up! ;)
Interesting article! I had a note a few years ago from a music professor I'd had my first semester in college. Since I'd left that school (after that one semester), I'd sent him cards for Christmas--first ones with pictures of my original paintings on them, and later ones that I hand-crafted. (He had been one of the few positive teachers in my school life that semester.) In his note, he remarked how impressed he was that no matter what I was going through at any given time (I have had major depression & schizophrenia pretty much my whole adult life), my creative spirit never seemed to fail. It may get hard to find sometimes, and crafting doesn't always bring me joy, but I think overall it is just as important to my mental health as the medicines I take!
The psychologist in the article (link above) wrote a book called Lifting Depression: A Neuroscientist's Hands-on Approach to Activating Your Brain's Healing Power (Kelly Lambert)
Positive proof that card making really is therapy!
Here is the amazon link if you want to read the first few pages:
Busy Hands & Brain Chemistry
