I learned to crochet during lockdown. Along with a lot of other people, I found the repetitive motions, soft textures and cheerful colours a welcome sanctuary from the extreme stress of the news. Why does crocheting sooth my brain?
Sensory Activities For Students.
Crocheting is among some of the recommended sensory activities that can help us calm ourselves. I was familiar with sensory activities as they relate to children* but I hadn’t considered them as adult tools. Using fidget toys, sketch books, and play-dough to help students self-regulate was common. But what about self-regulating the teacher?
Everyone Gets Anxious
The need for reducing anxiety definitely doesn’t evaporate once you leave elementary school. One could argue that it only gets more intense as you navigate puberty, higher learning, relationships, work, the stresses of your own children and aging**. But crochet was not a skill I taught my class (too difficult with online school) and so I didn’t connect it with calming tools.
Reduces Stress Hormones
According to brain research, crocheting and knitting have a positive effect on our bodies. I would guess, any rhythmic craft such as, sanding wood, or kneading dough, would have this effect, also.
More serotonin is released with repetitive movement, which improves mood and sense of calmness. After you’ve learned knitting or crochet, it can also reduce blood levels of cortisol-the stress hormone.***
Betty Houtman | Anxiety Management
Not only does the rhythm, sooth us but concentrating on left and right hand movements, and the pattern of the stitches, keeps you in the present. It’s meditative. If I get distracted from my project, it’s obvious in the stitches. I have to concentrate.
Tailored To My Needs
I can vary how much I want to relax and how much I want to be distracted by the type of project I choose. When I’m feeling like I need to stop ruminating, a more challenging pattern forces me to concentrate. I make small, detailed toys called amigurumi. When I just want to keep my hands busy and not think too much, I switch to a large blanket with a repetitive stitch pattern. Granny squares are excellent for this.
Granny Wisdom
It makes me laugh to think that for a long time we associated knitting and crocheting with older women: granny crafts. It was looked down on and dismissed. But the grannies knew the power of what they were doing. They were busy soothing their frazzled nerves in the guise of making you a new scarf. It may have been more about the process, than the product: their secret.
What’s your experience with the effects of repetitive crafts such as crochet? Comment below.
**https://www.webmd.com/healthy-aging/what-to-know-about-anxiety-in-older-adults
***https://www.anxietyresourcecenter.org/2017/10/crochet-helps-brain/
I am interested to read this: Knit For Health And Wellness: How To Knit A Flexible Mind And More… by Betsan Corkhill
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