As life keeps rolling, and stress keeps piling, I find it increasingly more essential to create and maintain regular outlets to ensure my overall health continues.
Walking has become a very mindless, simple, way to burn off some steam, while also finding balance with minimal effort. Being close to nature often clears my mind, and being able to move my body at the same time keeps me ahead of the daily grind with a multitude of benefits all requiring minimal preparedness.
With that said, however, I have recently come to rely upon my artistic strengths as a primary outlet. Anything that is "3-D art" peaks my interest… Whether we’re throwing clay, painting, sketching, or doing crafty 3-D projects, if it requires my hands and a little creativity, I'm in! My overwhelming favorite, and it's really not even close, is crocheting. It's easy to set up, even easier to "break down," and you can enjoy it with minimal out of pocket expense. So much can be created with a hook and a strand, it truly blows my mind, from sweaters to bags to jackets to wallets, the world is my oyster. While I do make a regular habit of visiting my favorite YouTubers, diving into project after project, sometimes getting lost down the rabbit hole for hours, even the worst of days can be quickly and easily diluted by just a few minutes of crocheting. Before I know it, I’m making sense again (or so says my daughter) remembering things I had forgotten, sorting out problems I had previously felt were insurmountable, and truly finding solutions to whatever the day has thrown at me.
One major issue stands to foil this ‘perfect’ escape of mine. I know so many people who see crocheting as I do, and whole-heartedly embrace it as their "sanity-saving necessity." Unfortunately many of these people have had to slow down, or even stop doing what they love. The reason? Repetitive Motion Injuries! So much of what we all do regularly entails the use of our hands and fingers!
This is where we separate the critical thinkers from the rest of the pack. We know deep down that whatever we enjoy requires a certain level of "protection & maintenance." Good, solid hand health is becoming more and more essential in today’s world for a multitude of reasons, as “our fingers and hands are how we interact with the world around us.”
What are you doing to take care of yours?
Written: Felicia Pocius