When we hear children’s uncontrollable laughter, screams of joy or bear witness to their excitement and the smiles on their faces, we often can’t help but smile too and connect to their joy, happiness and sense of freedom. We may even be brought back to our own childhood memories -whether it be playing tag at recess, dodgeball or spending countless hours playing with one’s favourite toys (mine being Barbies, piles of legos or make belief diner drive thru).
But can you remember the last time you played? The last time you allowed yourself as an adult to just to play, forget responsibilities and feel free?
If you can’t, then you may be missing out on an important way to give your physical and mental health a boost.
There’s a reason why we associate playtime with young children: free play helps kids discover the world and how it works. Play is essential for children as they grow because it helps them develop language, vocabulary, social-cognitive, collaboration and turn-taking skills along with their emotional intelligence.
We’ve come to accept that play as an important part of a healthy child’s development, but who’s to say that play is only beneficially or advantageous for children? Definitely not science. Studies show that adults, too, have a lot to gain from the act of playing.
One of the definitions of play, from the Oxford English Dictionary is: To do things for pleasure, as children do; to enjoy yourself, rather than work
Who wouldn’t like to experience more moments of pleasure, enjoyment and freedom in their days? Play is so key and yet so often overlooked in adulthood.
As adults, we often get pulled into society’s expectations of us, become to busy or focus on more serious pursuits such as our careers, our relationships, and our families—all of which are valid pursuits. Yet in doing so, we often get stuck in the hustle and bustle of every day life and responsibilities and forget that we as adults need our own play time.
Play for adults is critical in our stressful go-go-go lives. Play has been shown to release endorphins, improve brain functionality, and stimulate creativity. And it can even help to keep us young and feeling energetic. Studies show that play improves memory and stimulates the growth of the cerebral cortex. Play has also been shown to trigger the secretion of BDNF, a substance essential for the growth of brain cells. Play is also shown to help us manage with stress with greater ease and fluidity, creative thinking, childlike exuberance, and laughing more often.
So maybe its time to tap into play to enhance your life experiences, your professions, your relationships, and your family lives as adults as well.
Fortunately we can easily create a play practice in our lives as there are many different ways to play and many different types of play.
Physical play like sports and exercise reduces stress hormones and triggers the release of endorphins— your feel-good hormones — which elevates your mood and helps you relax after a stressful day. Physical play can also be extremely beneficial for your physical health (strengthens ones heart, boost lung capacity and much more).
Laughter, which is present in many kinds of playful activities, releases those same feel-good hormones. The act of simply laughing with others will also foster a sense of connection and strengthen your relationships, too.
Finally, as you age, play (especially the social and group kinds) facilitates happiness, helps prevent depression, improves cognitive health and lowers your risk of developing age-related diseases like dementia.
But what exactly qualifies as play?
Think of play as more of a mental approach to activities, not necessarily the particular activities themselves. In fact, you don’t really need to worry about if an activity constitutes as play or not, as long as you adopt a playful mindset and of course, have fun, while you’re partaking! It could be taking part in your favorite sport, playing a board game with your family, camping or hiking with friends, taking an exercise class or cooking class, cooking a new recipe and etc.
What feels like play to you may not to the next person, and that’s okay.
Being happy, relaxed, free, feeling like time is flowing, not constantly checking your watch — those things signify that you are in play mode.
So maybe its time to experiment a bit, find what works for you, as we all could use a bit more play in our responsible, adult lives. Let’s get out there and play more.
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