Coloring Therapy: Scribble Stress Away

In order to de-stress and relax, you need to find the right place to color. Much like choosing your particular brand of exercise or diet, your de-stressing and meditative environment are entirely up to you. Some people find silence relaxing. Some people cannot stand it. Some people will want to multi-task while others might need to focus entirely on the task at hand. Experiment with where and how you color. Create your own coloring therapy regimen and make sure, to be honest with yourself if you are actually enjoying yourself and whether or not it is working. Do not stress yourself out about how to de-stress.
Some great ways to relax while coloring: make yourself a cup of tea, listen to a favorite album or audiobook, color while marathoning your favorite television show, color first thing in the morning or right before bed. 
 

Trying to meditate or practice yoga in a busy environment would be absolutely silly; the same is true for coloring therapy. You need to find a space that is free of those factors. This means tucking away your cell phone, stepping away from the computer, and taking some time alone. Allowing things like phone calls or house guests interrupt you break your concentration and will entirely eliminate your downtime.

If you are coloring to eliminate stress, make sure that you keep that in mind and truly commit to giving yourself this time. It is also important to keep in mind that using adult coloring books as a form of relaxation means that you should be connecting to the activity and not the final product. It can be tempting, especially for creative and crafty people, to get caught up with making your page look as stunning as possible. Stressing yourself out about how your final product looks rather than just relaxing in the moment might distract you, but it will not let your brain settle into a meditative state. Try and connect to your intentions before sitting down to color, relaxing your mind and reminding yourself this is you-time and not a time to prove your creative and artistic prowess. 

Adult coloring book pages are gorgeous and intricate. They are designed to force you to concentrate on the task at hand rather than any outside factors or stresses buzzing in your brain. These itty bitty details also mean that coloring a full printable coloring page or coloring book page will take a long time. These pages were not designed for you to fill in during one sitting. So, before getting started, decide how long you will be coloring and stick to it. This method will allow you to chill out rather than rush to finish shading a page. You could even set an alarm and just dive in until your time is done. 

Try your hand at coloring book therapy when you sit down and shade in these gorgeous, free printable coloring pages. There's no need to stress about spending an extra few dollars on a coloring book when you can download coloring book pages for free!