Mindfully Healing

Many colouring in books advertise themselves as ‘art therapy’, but do they make people feel better? Colouring in books do help to improve people’s mood, new research finds. However, ‘real’ art therapy has other advantages on top, the authors argue. Dr Girija Kaimal, who led the study, said: “The main takeaway is that coloring has some limited benefits like reducing stress and negative mental states. But it does not shift anything else of substance, develop relationships, nor result in any personal development.” Art therapists argue that therapy is about more

Around one million people around the world take their own lives each year. Hopelessness and emotional pain are the two main reasons why people commit suicide, research finds. Common beliefs about suicide were not strongly supported by the study. People were less likely to mention the following reasons: Financial problems, as a cry for help, or to solve some kind of practical problem. Instead, it was more because the emotional pain they were in was unbearable and they felt that it would never go away. Professor David Klonsky, study co-author,