Why Adults benefit from crafting

Taking part in arts and crafts is so important, not just for children, but it’s also essential for adults! Crafting is beneficial to our health and wellbeing, from keeping our mind active by learning new skills, to the way it enables us to form social connections, to developing problem solving skills and increasing our feeling of purpose and self-esteem.

There are so many great merits to crafting and working with your hands, with a multitude of studies and research providing evidence of the health benefits, including the positive impact on our mental health.

The benefits of crafting include…

In an article written by ​Ashley Foster, there are numerous health benefits from taking part in crafting activities:

What are the benefits of crafting?

• ​Reduces stress. Stress is one of our leading health problems. Its effects range from migraines and fatigue to heart failure and early memory loss.

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• Decreases risk of cognitive impairment as you age. Several studies have shown that knitting and crochet can postpone age-related memory loss. The crafts can also be soothing for those people who are already experiencing signs of dementia. A study by the Mayo Clinic showed knitting is neuroprotective and may reduce dementia by as much as 50%.

• Helps relieve and reduce depression and anxiety. Depression relief is by far the most reported and studied benefit of crochet and knitting. The repetition of the crafts has been shown to release serotonin, a natural anti-depressant.

• Helps build self-esteem and confidence. Simply visualising, working on and then creating a project can make you feel better about yourself. This has helped people with everything from coping with the fear of unemployment to gaining the strength to leave abusive relationships.

• Helps with insomnia. Insomnia is a terrible feeling. You are tired but you can’t sleep so then you’re frustrated that you can’t sleep, which just makes it harder to sleep. A study by the Mind/Body Medical Institute found that 100% of insomnia patients reported improved sleep with 90% being able to eliminate medication in a programme that included knitting!

• Helps with grief processing.  During periods of grief, crafting activities can be comforting during this time particularly if it’s something that can done without a lot of money or effort. It can, for a moment, take your mind off your pain.

• Builds community and friendships. No matter what stage of your life, or what health issue you may be dealing with, it helps to have a community of support around you, which can be achieved through crafting and crafting groups!

​Let's Craft NI offers a range of health and wellbeing crafting programmes for groups, which support positive mental health and mindfulness, whilst encouraging creativity and lifelong learning.  These programmes are aligned with the recommended 5 Steps to Positive Mental Health.

Our activities boost confidence, enhance skills and learning, provide a sense of achievement, and encourage mindfulness and wellbeing.
For crafting inspiration and ideas from Let's Craft NI, check out our social media channels @letscraftni

Check out our FREE videos on YouTube or Facebook page for inspiration.