Global Courant
What do you do in your free time? Taking a few minutes or a space to do nothing, go for a walk, exercise, sleep and pursue a hobby are important activities to rest and get out of the usual rhythm of work and studies.
Research ensures that among the various actions, hobbies achieve psychological well-being in the face of everyday stress. One of the main points is that hobbies, although they seem far from daily responsibilities, do influence their effects on health and being healthy and happy makes people increase their productivity.
Balance is important, experts say. The long working hours make it difficult to rest, for example, in Japan every year a phenomenon called “karoshi” occurs, between 2,000 and 3,000 employees die due to overwork and exhaustion, and without a doubt, the phenomenon of exhaustion impacts other countries.
A study presented by Manpower Group in 2022 called What women want (at work) showed the opinions of nearly five thousand women and although fatigue fell to 39% in the post-pandemic, among millennials ( 1981 to 1993) and generation Z (2000 to 2010), four out of 10 feel more tired.
“Both women (39%) and men (37%) feel the effects of the pandemic. People want employers to offer more – to prioritize well-being, providing flexibility, competitive wages and good working conditions, and skills development,” the document says.
The truth is that experts say that in the desire to have a productive life they have left hobbies as things of the past. “Even worse: many hobbies have become side jobs or career jumpstarts, turning what we supposedly do for fun into…more work. (“Do you like to embroider? You should sell what you do!”),” says a New York Times article.
The pleasure of disconnecting
Estuardo Mendoza, a Guatemalan naturopath from @floreseralasalud, invites you to spend more time away from the screens and not forget what you enjoy.
“Scientifically it is proven that to combat stress it is possible to do small actions that transform the day,” adds the specialist.
It suggests everything from having a garden at home to walking barefoot through nature. “Taking care of the plants and watering them relaxes,” she says.
In addition, it invites you to look for an activity that awakens positive emotions inside, without forgetting to include social contact, which is also important and is often better than a pill.
To do?
Find an activity in your story that has sparked your interest and pick it up again. If you feel you don’t have something that you are interested in or passionate about right now, try something new.
Here is a short list of possibilities:
-Learn to play an instrument.
-Enroll in a painting or sculpture class.
-Collect objects.
-Attend a dance class.
-Create memories when traveling or sharing alone, with your family or friends.
-Write a short story or novel.
-Learn to knit.
-Look for a new art technique.
-For some cooking is a way to relax.
-Read.
-Do yoga.
-Get inspired by a craft.
-Learn a new language.
-Take care of your plants.
-Be passionate about a video game.
-Join a club.
-Learn more about lettering or calligraphy.
-Find a sport you like.
It might interest you: These hobbies will help your mental health (their importance and how to choose them)
Benefits of embroidering
For some, embroidering as a hobby promotes tranquility. It is said that this activity reduces stress because it is possible for a moment to concentrate on projects and forget about other situations. It has even been compared with similar benefits to practicing yoga and meditation.
It is also positive because it allows connection with others, while embroidering you can talk to those who are present. Today the techniques are varied and there are online and face-to-face courses or workshops.
The artist Quique Lee, He is currently developing a project called Men Don’t Cry Even With Their Guts Out and invited a group of men to embroider as a space for reflection on masculinities, based on collective and personal creation.
The activity consisted of various textile pieces (men’s scarves measuring 30 x 30 centimeters each, approximately) intervened with linen-engraving, transfer and embroidery. The result will be presented in July, in the Perjura Proyecto gallery, located in the Historic Center, comments the project director, Ana Lucrecia Quiñónez.
The scarves had marked phrases or rules of traditional masculinity. These canvases were delivered to groups of men, who intervened freely during reflection circles and group embroidery.
The activity consists of a safe space to reflect on what it means to be a man. “The piece will form part of a collective work of art,” explains the artist.
“This restriction that we have to not speak so as not to show weakness and express ourselves leads men to psychological suffering, suicide and other problems,” he adds. He shares that those who were interested in this project have often come with zero knowledge of how to do it. Men who are recovering from some process have also participated, as well as weavers from the country.
In a medium-term project, it is desired to adapt the activity to work with other segments of the population such as prisoners, the army, and other groups related to a more traditional masculinity. Lee for years has dedicated herself to embroidery as a form of expression, she started with small formats and then varied sizes.
In the world of books
In the Rotary Guatemalan Academy of Arts and Lettersa group of Guatemalan Rotarians, aims to promote knowledge of Guatemalan artists and learn more about art, culture and literature from Guatemala and the world, says Esther Brol, one of the members of this initiative that comes not only to people from Guatemala but has spread to different countries.
He was born in 2021 when the pandemic was still in a complicated state. The group invited them to read a monthly book and comment on it online in a space called Reading is traveling. Now, they have joined the last Wednesday of the month, at 6:00 p.m. on their Facebook page and to date they have more than 25 titles that they have shared and discussed with special guests.
A study from the University of Sussex, in the United Kingdom, ensures that reading could reduce stress by 68% and that only six minutes of reading can reduce heart rate. (Free Press Photo: Pexels)
The club has also read Picasso’s secret, by Francesc Miralles, Mr. Roque’s fear shop, by Antonio González and Golden Beauty, by Laurie Lico Albanese, to mention a few works.
Brol remembers that this solution was like a balm for the moment that was being lived and this group has been strengthened every month with the new experiences that the pages of the selected books leave behind. The next meeting will be on June 28 where they will discuss What are you looking at? 150 Years of Modern Art in the Blink of an Eye, by Will Gompertz.
get closer to nature
the bonsai is described as an ornamental plant subjected to a cultivation technique that prevents its growth by cutting roots and pruning branches.
Jorge Palacios, from the Bonsai 502 group, shares that he is part of this organization that began to meet during the pandemic. It is currently made up of 25 active people.
Part of the Bonsai 502 club. They seek to promote this way of caring for small shrubs. (Free Press Photo: courtesy Jorge Palacios)
In their private Facebook group there are almost 200 people and there they share information about the care of these plants, the techniques for working, as well as other details of these plants.
“Bonsai as a hobby helps us to free ourselves from stress, coming into direct contact with nature, it also helps us to be orderly and more disciplined because the trees require it,” says Palacios.
The expert acknowledges that caring for bonsai improves motor skills, and also ensures that at some point it stops being a hobby and becomes a lifestyle.
