by: Lianne Johnson, LPC

Today I want to share with you a tool I have found helpful to manage and reduce anxiety.

As a Licensed Professional Counselor and a human being who struggles with anxiety, I am continually looking for ways to help manage and reduce anxiety in my own life, as well as in the lives of my clients’.

Do you like to color?  Maybe that is a hard question for you to answer since you are likely to be an adult or teenager reading this and haven’t colored in many years.  Perhaps I should ask:  Are you willing to try coloring as a way to manage and reduce your anxiety?

Recently, I ordered a mindfulness coloring book which has been designed to be used as a tool to reduce symptoms of stress, anxiety, and to literally slow you down from your busy life.  Pictured below is the specific book I ordered from Amazon and one of the pictures I have been working on.

As you can see from the picture attention to detail is a must.  Concentrating your thoughts on the area you are coloring is a must.  Allowing time from when you begin coloring a picture until it is finished is a must.

Slowing down, concentrating your thoughts on what is specifically in front of you, and allowing yourself to be present in what you are doing brings peace into your current moments.

Do you ever experience…

-racing thoughts?

-panic attacks?

-pains in your chest due to current stressors in your life?

-negative thoughts?

-repetitive thoughts?

If you find yourself answering “yes” to the above questions then grabbing one of these coloring books for yourself may be helpful for you as you learn ways to cope with your stress and anxiety in life.  This is just one tool among many that you can try.

If you do decide to find a coloring book for yourself be sure to get colored pencils.  Crayons make it really hard to color within the lines!