Overstimulated? This is why you should start coloring
A month ago, like many evenings, I was scrolling on TikTok. I watched video after video as the hours passed. It seems really fun, all that entertainment, but actually, that constant stream of dopamine is not good for you at all. With all that dopamine you get in quick shots, you want more and more. I notice that myself: my attention span is shorter than ever and I sleep a lot worse. Yes, my parents were right: it’s always that phone. All those stimuli do more harm than good, but what should you do to unwind? Well (ironically enough): the latest TikTok craze: just go coloring.
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Why you get completely overstimulated by your phone
Look, let me be honest: I spend too much time on my phone. Everyone around me does too. Most of us check social media first thing in the morning. That’s of course very tempting when you’ve just turned off your alarm, but it’s not good for you. After your morning routine, you continue: with your morning coffee or breakfast. Then your day starts: you go exercise, or you just go straight to work, or do the laundry or something like that. But yes, it doesn’t take long before you pick up your phone again. Why is that? You’re just addicted. Your brain wants that dopamine hit again. Just like a drug addict wants another hit, your brain wants more of that happiness hormone. I understand that, because that substance makes you happy, but just like many things on this planet, too much is never good.
Dopamine in abundance causes you to become addicted: you want that quick fix at all costs. Just to feel a bit of happiness. It’s just like a vape addiction: once you’ve built that habit, it’s hard to get rid of it. And that’s exactly why you start scrolling excessively and end up in a ‘brain rot’. That literally means your brain ‘rots’ from all that aimless scrolling. You might learn something from the videos you see, but it’s not really stimulating for your brain. You’re not challenging yourself. Eventually, when you can put your phone down after a few hours, you’ve taken in an overdose of dopamine, which makes you tired, listless, and unmotivated.
This pattern causes you to become overstimulated. That’s not strange when you see everything from the whole world. Then you see a video of an influencer who has spent her entire savings at Chanel and then suddenly you find yourself in cleaning tips. There’s always a new video or post that grabs your attention. This all adds up. Your own life is already busy enough, and then you’re also mentally overworking. Yes, that’s a recipe for overstimulation. And although you really notice that you are overstimulated (think of poor sleep, not being able to concentrate well, being grumpy, and feeling stressed), your brain still wants that dopamine. You end up in a loop. But yes, how do you stop that circle? By breaking it with a phone-free hobby.
How does coloring work when you are overstimulated?
So you’re looking for something to do that allows you to put your phone down for a bit. Now you could of course read a book or go for a walk, but when it’s so cold and dark outside, I understand that you really don’t feel like going for a walk. And reading a book? You don’t have the concentration for that. We know something else: coloring. Actually, I wanted to pick up this hobby last year, but this month it really happened. I had to and would get away from that phone. Ten minutes and a full shopping cart later, I ordered everything and off I went. And honestly? The first time I was almost four hours in without touching my phone once. That’s a real record, so yes: in my eyes, this really works. But what do the experts say about this? Why is it better to color than to read, for example?
By coloring, you are more consciously focusing your brain on something else. If you read and the story doesn’t appeal to you that much, you still get distracted. You’re basically just thinking, and with coloring, you’re really actively engaged. According to psychologist Gloria Martinez Ayala you use your sight, fine motor skills, and both the logical and creative parts of your brain while coloring. This ensures that your brain is truly challenged and you don’t have the tendency to distract yourself like when reading. And that creative part is what helps you turn off that stress voice in your head. You’re no longer preoccupied with that.
In a study from the academic journal Creativity Research Journal scientists investigated what effect coloring had on the brains of students. It turned out that after 30 minutes, the negative mood and anxiety in the boys and girls decreased. So yes: you really do relax from coloring. You learn to put your thoughts on 0 for a moment and just start coloring. You are then much more focused on whether you are coloring within the lines and what different colors you want to use for your drawing. That simplicity is exactly what you need to unwind.
Crash course coloring: this is how you do it
Okay, so coloring works really well for you. But where do you start? You can of course just buy some markers and a coloring book at the first store you find. That’s perfectly fine, but I also understand if you want to join in on the coloring craze like those others on TikTok. At least that’s what inspired you (or actually me) to start coloring. If you take a look at the app, you are overwhelmed with information: some color with alcohol markers, others use extra acrylic markers, and some have thousands of colored pencils. There are hundreds of coloring book brands full of cute animals and there are so many techniques to get the best out of your coloring skills. But yes, I can hear you thinking: Laudonne, I went to color to unwind, not to spend five hours on TikTok getting inspired and learning how to color first? That’s right. That’s why I’ve specially created a simple crash course in coloring for you. Then you’ll learn how to color like a real TikTok pro and you won’t have to figure anything out yourself:
@leah.colour Probably my favourite page so far🌻🌸 Colouring book: @bobbiegoods Spring-Summer ☀️ Markers: @Ohuhuart, Sakura White Gelly Rolls, Staedtler Triplus Fineliners, Uni Posca Paint Pens #coloring #colouring #colortok #coloringbook #bobbiegoods #bobbiegoodscoloringbook #spring #summer #sun #nature #flowers #wildflower #icecream #park #ohuhu #ohuhumarkers #ohuhuart #staedtler #paintmarkers #adultcoloring #CapCut #pinterest
1. Use alcohol markers
Look, you can of course just buy markers or colored pencils and start coloring. There’s nothing wrong with that. If you get fewer stimuli from that, then that’s perfectly fine. But if you want to color like the trendy girls? Then you really need to use alcohol markers. And no, you don’t have to get the crème de la crème right away. You can always get those Ohuhu’s later. You just want to color nicely, it doesn’t have to be perfect. Action has a very large case of alcohol markers that are also just good. Those Decotime variants are also a bit cheaper.
But those alcohol markers do come with instructions. You can’t just start coloring with those things, because yes: there’s alcohol in them. You need to put something under your page, like cardboard, thick paper, or a special anti-leak page, so that the markers don’t leak onto the next coloring page – or worse: onto your beautiful hardwood table. You really don’t want that. Want to color just like the TikToks above? Then you can find many tutorials on how to ‘blend’ and apply other techniques. But you really don’t have to, you know. You can also just go ahead and color, especially if you’re doing it purely to unwind.
2. Make sure you have enough coloring books
Now you don't have to immediately buy thirty coloring books just to end up storing them in a dark corner of your wardrobe. However, it is nice to have some different options to color in. This ensures that you get bored less quickly and therefore don't reach for your phone. Curious about which ones we like? Then you can read on.
3. These are all the materials you can use
Do you want to learn to color like in the videos above and spark a new hobby? Then these are the products you can stock up on:
- Protection pages. These are plastic pages that you can place under a page in your coloring book. They are thin and specially made so that you can place them under your page without having to color on an annoying texture. And of course, it ensures that those alcohol markers don't bleed through.
- Markers. This can actually be anything you want to use. Think of alcohol markers from Ohuhu or Decotime, or just Stabilo felt-tip pens. You can even color with acrylic markers or pencils.
- White acrylic marker or gel pen. You can recognize the popular drawing style by the white highlights that are added at the end of the coloring page. This is usually done with these items.
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- Coloring books. Here you can freestyle, it's really just a matter of choosing. I can tell you which coloring books are trendy. Like… Fuzzy Hygge, Cozy Days, Berrie Coloring Volume 3, Girl Moments, Fairy Fuzz, Stress Relief and the most popular: Bobbie Goods.
- Fineliners. Of course, you can use any fineliner you want. From Ohuhu, from Action – whatever you like. You use these to add details on top of your alcohol markers. For example, to add wood grain to your trees.
Are you feeling a bit overwhelmed by all this stuff? I understand that. You don't have to follow all these ‘rules’. It's about finding a fun hobby that takes you away from your phone and social media. You want to stop all the brain rot, not necessarily become the new Bob Ross – so you really don't have to buy expensive alcohol markers or fancy coloring books. Just grab a coloring book at Bruna or order one online, buy some markers at Action and start coloring. After that, you can always invest in expensive things. Just enjoy coloring at your own pace, that's already enough. Bring on that anti-stimulation hobby. I'm definitely obsessed.
