Does an adult colouring book really help you relax? Read why colouring can feel calming, its limits and how to turn it into a short mindful break in your day.
We now see colouring books made for adults next to bookshop tills, in stationery shop windows and even on supermarket shelves: finely patterned flowers, mandala-like circles, cityscapes, animal figures. Some people smile and find it childish; others cannot get to sleep without colouring for half an hour each evening. So can an adult colouring book really help with your stress, or is it just a passing fad? In this article we explain why colouring feels relaxing to so many people, why it is not therapy, when it can actually create stress, and how you can turn your colouring time into a small mindful break.
What Is an Adult Colouring Book, and Why Has It Become So Popular?
An adult colouring book is a colouring book that usually contains more detailed and complex patterns than children's books and is designed for adults to use for enjoyment and relaxation. There are many different themes, such as mandala patterns, geometric motifs, nature themes, designs inspired by Turkish tiles (çini) and marbling (ebru), and city skylines.
There may be several reasons why these books have become so widespread:
- The need to get away from screens: Many people who spend all day at a computer and on their phone are looking for an activity that uses their hands and needs attention but is not demanding.
- A low threshold: While drawing seems to require "talent", in a colouring book the lines are already there. There is no fear of the blank page.
- Accessibility: A book and a few coloured pencils cost less than many hobbies. At a time when the rising cost of living is being felt, this is an advantage too.
- Portability: It is possible to colour for a few minutes even on the metro, on the bus, in a hospital waiting room or while waiting for your child to finish a class.
- Something that touches on childhood: The smell and sound of coloured pencils bring back memories of a carefree time for many people.
None of these reasons makes colouring an activity that "does everyone good"; but they help us understand why so many people turn to it.
Why Can an Adult Colouring Book Feel Relaxing?
There are several possible reasons why colouring does so many people good. These are not definite mechanisms but reasonable explanations of what the experience of colouring is like.
- It draws attention to the present. Trying to stay within the boundaries of an area, deciding which colour to choose and following the movement of the pencil on the paper can take the mind away for a while from worries about the future or thoughts about the past.
- It has a repetitive rhythm. Repeating the same movement at a calm pace can create a sense of mental slowing and stillness in some people.
- It offers a small area of control. At times when much in life is out of our control, a page where you alone decide which colour goes where can be reassuring.
- It gives a sense of completion. A page gradually filling up creates a tangible sense of progress. On days when the to-do list never ends, this small sense of having finished something can be valuable.
- It lets you create with low expectations. The result does not have to be shown to anyone. Producing something without the pressure of "it has to be good" can support a gentler attitude towards yourself.
A colouring page won't put your life in order; but for a few minutes it can remind you that at least one corner of it is in your hands.
Is an Adult Colouring Book Therapy? Knowing the Limits
On social media, colouring books are sometimes promoted with phrases such as "therapy book" or "pages that wipe out anxiety". These phrases are misleading.
Colouring that you do on your own can be a valuable form of self-care and creative activity; but it is not therapy. Art-based therapy is carried out within a therapeutic relationship with a trained practitioner, with a specific aim and within an ethical framework. And because the patterns in a colouring book are ready-made, the dimension of personal expression that art-based therapy values is limited.
It is also important to be honest about the evidence. Systematic reviews of art-based interventions stress that, despite promising findings, most studies are small and methodologically limited. Studies examining the effect of colouring on your own are more limited still. So the most balanced thing that can be said is this: colouring may help some people calm down in the moment; but it cannot take the place of treatment for an anxiety disorder, depression or long-term stress.
There is one more point to watch: colouring can sometimes become a quiet way of avoiding a problem that needs to be solved. Colouring for hours to put off a difficult conversation, avoid looking at a pile of work or keep away from an intense feeling may bring relief in the short term but can make the difficulty bigger in the long term. Noticing whether colouring is resting you or keeping you away from something is the key to keeping this activity healthy.
If you are curious about claims regarding the calming effect of mandala colouring, you can also read our article on mandala colouring.
What Can You Look Out for When Choosing and Using an Adult Colouring Book?
There is no single book or method that suits everyone. To find what suits you, you might think about the following:
- Pattern density: Very fine patterns with small areas are calming for some people and tiring and frustrating for others. Choosing medium-density patterns for your first attempts can be a good start.
- Theme: Nature, geometric patterns, traditional motifs or cityscapes... Choose the theme you enjoy. A theme that does someone else good may not do the same for you.
- Paper quality: If you will be using felt-tip pens, thick paper that doesn't bleed through to the next page is less frustrating.
- Materials: Coloured pencils give a sense of control, felt-tips offer vivid colours, and pastels provide a freer experience. You can start with whatever you have; expensive sets are not necessary.
- Digital options: There are also colouring apps for tablets and phones. But if your aim is to get away from screens, paper and pencil may be more suitable.
- Pay attention to your body: Colouring while bent over for a long time can cause neck and back pain. It is important to sit at a table in good light and to take breaks.
Turning Your Colouring Time into a Mindful Break
You can use colouring not just to pass the time but also to get in touch with yourself. The ten-minute sequence below offers a simple suggestion for this:
- Pause before you start. Put your phone on silent, take a few slow breaths and ask yourself about your mood right now: Am I tense, tired, restless?
- Choose a colour, but don't rush. Notice which colour draws you at that moment. There is no right colour.
- Feel the movement. Notice the point where the pencil touches the paper, the pressure, the sound. If your mind wanders elsewhere, notice this and gently return to the pencil.
- Notice the judgements. If thoughts such as "That colour didn't work" or "I went over the line" come up, don't try to push them away; just notice them and keep colouring.
- You don't have to finish. When the ten minutes are up, the page may be half done. Remember that what matters is not finishing but living those ten minutes.
- Ask again at the end. How do I feel now? Has anything changed?
This approach rests on a logic similar to mindfulness practices. If you would like to know more about this, you can read our article what is mindfulness.
Imagine a mother who works in an accountancy office and spends her evenings helping her children with homework, and who says she never finds a moment to herself during the day. She leaves a small colouring book and a few pencils on the kitchen table and colours for ten minutes while the tea brews. After a while her children start sitting next to her and colouring their own books. These ten minutes do not take away her stress; but they become a pause amid the rush of the day in which she can breathe and notice herself.
When Colouring Causes Stress: The Perfectionism Trap
Not everyone finds colouring relaxing, and this is entirely normal. For some people, a colouring book can turn into a source of pressure instead:
- Wanting to tear out the page or start again after going over the line
- Feeling uneasy because the colours don't seem to "go together"
- Comparing yourself with the flawlessly coloured pages seen on social media
- Being unable to get up until a page is finished, colouring until late at night
These may show perfectionist tendencies spilling over into colouring too. In such cases you can suggest small experiments to yourself: deliberately colouring an area in the "wrong" colour, leaving a page half finished, setting a time limit and getting up when it ends. These experiments can help you put some distance between yourself and the thought "I have to be flawless." For example, an engineer who checks every report at work again and again may notice that, in the colouring book bought for relaxation, he cannot bear a single stray mark. Spending his evenings tense and searching for an eraser instead of colouring shows him a pattern he actually lives at work as well. This realisation can be more valuable than the colouring itself, because the person starts to see how many areas of life the thought "I mustn't make mistakes" has spread into. If perfectionism is making many areas of your life difficult, it may also help to talk about this with a professional.
From Colouring to Your Own Lines: The Next Step
For many adults, a colouring book is the first step towards picking up a pencil again after many years. After a while some people want to go beyond ready-made lines. If you notice this wish, you can move forward in small steps:
- Use the blank corners of the page. Add your own small motifs to the edge of a pattern: a leaf, a line, a row of dots.
- Start with patches of colour. On a blank sheet, put down patches of colour without thinking of any shape. Notice which colours you are drawn to that day.
- Find shapes in a scribble. Close your eyes and move the pencil freely over the paper, then look for a shape within the scribble and colour it in.
- Draw everyday objects. The glass on your table, the tree you can see from the window... The aim is not likeness but looking and noticing.
The same principle applies in these steps too: the process matters, not the result. Moving from the safe frame of ready-made patterns to your own lines can sometimes feel unsettling at first; this unease is part of the experience too. We discussed what drawing and painting can bring to daily life in our article on the benefits of drawing and painting.
Sharing colouring with others can be a pleasure of its own as well. Colouring and drawing meet-ups held in some municipal cultural centres, libraries or cafés can ease feelings of loneliness. Taking two colouring pages with you when visiting an older relative in a care home can create a quiet shared activity that makes conversation easier. And in a crowded family home, a colouring book can be one of the rare activities that brings different generations together at the same table.
When Should You Seek Professional Support?
Activities such as colouring can be a good support, but they cannot carry every difficulty on their own. You might consider speaking with a mental health professional in the following situations:
- Stress, tension or anxiety has lasted for weeks and is affecting your work, family or social life
- You have been struggling to fall asleep or stay asleep for a long time
- You are having moments of intense fear that come with physical symptoms such as a racing heart, shortness of breath or trembling
- Colouring or another activity has become your only way of avoiding facing problems
- You are having thoughts of harming yourself; in this case, call 112 (emergency services) without delay
Work in the area of anxiety and panic is grounded in research-supported methods such as cognitive behavioural therapy. In this process, activities that do the person good, such as colouring, walking or music, can be included in the plan to support daily routine and self-care; but they do not replace treatment.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is an adult colouring book good for anxiety?
Some people say they feel calmer in the moment while colouring. However, colouring is not a treatment for an anxiety disorder. If anxiety has been affecting your daily life for a long time, it would be more appropriate to speak with a professional.
How much colouring should you do a day?
There is no set amount of time. Short but regular periods, for example ten to fifteen minutes a day, are more sustainable for many people than long, infrequent sessions. What matters is that colouring does not turn into an obligation.
I always choose the same colours when colouring. Does this mean anything?
Colour preferences are usually about taste, habit or the materials you have to hand. No firm conclusions about your personality or mood can be drawn from the colours you choose.
Can I use a colouring book together with my child?
Of course. Colouring side by side can be a lovely way to spend calm time together. Just take care to make room for your child's own choices rather than correcting their page or steering their colour choices.
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Eda Erkan Alapala
Klinik Psikolog. İstanbul Kent Üniversitesi Klinik Psikoloji Tezli Yüksek Lisans mezunu; bilişsel davranışçı terapi, çocuk merkezli oyun terapisi ve çocuk-ergen psikoterapisi alanlarında eğitimlerini tamamlamıştır.
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