Creative Activities & Your Mental Health

Creatively Blogging
Jul 14
2 min read

Happy Tuesday! Are you guys enjoying this lovely weather? Have you been maintaining your self-care practices? How is your mental health? What are you thinking and saying to people around you and to yourself? Supporting your mental health doesn’t have to be complicated.

Life is full of stress. Many of us carry mental stress without ever recognizing it, whether it's due to deadlines, taking on responsibility to care for others, studying, or just trying to keep up with everything. It's very easy to become overwhelmed and forget to check in and reset, as failing to do so may impact how you manage those responsibilities. Occasionally, we forget and neglect to use the resources available to us. Studies have shown that the body's primary stress hormone, cortisol, was considerably lowered after just 45 minutes of creating art. It has also been demonstrated that structured, repeated activities, such as coloring or pattern drawing, can lower anxiety. Over 80% of arts-based programs reported less stress, according to a comprehensive analysis (Yang, 2026).

Creative activities provide an alternative outlet for our emotions when they feel overwhelming or too difficult to express. Being creative, especially as a moderate distraction, has been shown to elevate mood and lessen anxiety. Creativity allows your mind to rest, whether you're journaling, drawing, dancing in your living room, or listening intently to music. The World Health Organization has recognized the value of creative arts and their effects on your mental health and the prevention of sickness. Because creative activities are accessible, affordable, and flexible, they work especially well in our communities and educational institutions. You can improve your mental health by engaging in the following creative activities:

Visual Arts: Doodling, coloring, and watercolor painting are activities that help calm an overworked mind.
Sensory Hobbies: Using your senses in practical ways, such as baking, cooking, knitting, or planting, helps you focus on the here and now.
Writing & Reflection: Writing "affirmations/morning pages," gratitude logs, or free-form journals are examples of expressive writing that helps externalize inner fears.
Music & Rhythm: Your brain's reward centers are activated when you dance to your favorite song, sing in the shower, or listen to soothing music. Dopamine and oxytocin, two naturally occurring "feel-good" hormones, are released.