Adult Coloring Book Craze

As a child did you spend hours with your box of Crayolas(the kind with the built in crayon sharpener) contentedly coloring away in your coloring book?  Fast forward a few decades later and do you now as an adult still love to color in coloring books?  Adult coloring books are being sold everywhere you look.  Coloring has become a popular way for many adults to relax and refocus as way take a trip back to the comfort of childhood.

Coloring books have taken the top 10 spots on the New York Times best sellers list of games and activities for the month of January.  Why are so many joining the ranks of coloring adults?
Has coloring become a form of art therapy? Are people taking a journey back to their childhood memories? 

Coloring adults have a wide variety of reasons for pulling out their colored pencils, markers, and crayons to color.
Coloring has even become a form of socializing as coloring groups are springing up nationally.  Coloring adults meet in libraries, coffee shops and homes to color, share and compare.
Adults armed with colored pencils in a range of colors that no rainbow ever dreamed of are finding pleasure in coloring.  Coloring is such a simple engaging activity.  Its rhythmic repetition results in a finished product where colors are arranged at the whim of the artist.   You might not be able to draw a simple tree but a coloring book gives you the opportunity to create a picture to be proud of and feel like an accomplished artist.  In the process of coloring and creating you start to feel more focused and anxiety decreases.

The therapeutic qualities of art have long been recognized.  Carl Jung, a famed Swiss psychologist prescribed coloring mandalas to his patients.  He based this coloring activity on his belief that the Eastern mandala was a symbol that represented the whole personality.  Jung began experimenting with coloring mandalas from 1916 to 1920.  He created a series of colored mandalas during that time period that he felt represented where he was in his life.  In the coloring process he developed the theory that coloring mandalas allowed for an espression of the inner self. Jung is quoted as saying the mandala is, "the psychological expression of the totality of the self.”

 So back to our original question:  Did you color in coloring books as a child?  Do you color now that you are an adult? 

I struggle with this because I never enjoyed coloring books that much as a child.  I found it stressful to keep inside the line as I colored.  I would watch my sister merrily coloring away in her coloring book as I halfheartedly colored beside her. I preferred my crayons and a blank piece of paper that allowed me to draw lines where ever I wanted.    I dreaded going to a certain friend's house that always wanted to spend the afternoon coloring in coloring books.

As an adult I find that attitude has changed.  I actually find it relaxing now to mindlessly color in spaces.  I still prefer a blank piece of paper to make my own drawing however that type of drawing has become a serious endeavor.  My drawings are fulfilling in a different way than coloring.  Coloring is not as intense as drawing for me and so it becomes a method of simple relaxation.

Relaxation...something we all need in our lives.  Relaxation is important for a balanced life.  I think of my career as a teacher and realize the opportunity to relax during the day doesn't exist.  Teaching is demanding on many levels.  When you add your own personal life to your career demands you find you have very little time or energy left.  It is hard to carve out some guilt free time for you. 



Take time to color, sing, dance, or whatever it is that you enjoy. 

Taking care of you will keep you healthy enough to take care of others.   You work hard and you should not feel guilty about taking time to enjoy life. 

 Relax and Happy Coloring!

Adult Coloring Book for Teachers: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Coloring-Book-for-Teachers-2349507