Why does my wife need to colour in?

Today I'd like to address a question in the kindest way possible by writing this blog article about a question sent to me. If you know someone who has a husband who just doesn't get it, please share it so they can understand why something like mindful colouring needs to exist in the toolkit of all women!

Barry sent me this question:

"Why does my wife need to color in? I don't mean to sound condescending, but my wife doesn't do much at home and now she wants your coloring book to calm herself. As if coloring will help to get her chores done and feed our boys!"

"Dear Barry, your sweet wife is most likely suffering from overwhelm during the day when her usual tasks get too much or when they start piling on. During the last 5 years we discovered through our community of women that they can rely on a regular colouring practice to be one of the healthier alternatives to help them manage daily stressors.

It's not so much that she cannot cope, or that she doesn't have time to do it all - It's that everything is demanding her attention when she really needs a bit of "me-time".

Colouring in can shift the focus towards an easier task. And believe me when I say this - housework, laundry, dishes, nappies, feeding children three to five times a day, running errands & keeping up with other wife details all add up to the constant load & pressure she might be feeling.

Now, let's be clear about something... it's not that she wants my book specifically, she is looking for a way to calm herself - to literally give back to herself. She's probably noticed that other's are colouring in for relaxation & saw our book while scrolling.

Thought this colouring book she could dissolve the feelings of being overwhelmed; which is one of the reasons we keep on sharing about it, especially now during Floral-tober.

Barry, by giving her permission to relax you can give her a way to releasing those feelings. Letting her feel free to create when things feel hard could make her life feel less stressful. She might just need to hear that you want her to make time for herself & her hobbies."

Let's look at more facts any mother, daughter or wife might need a colouring book habit.

For me, as a career professional, the most important reason is to give my brain a break. It's about a moment of time that helps to solve the underlying problems while my brain feels relaxed. This really helps to shift the focus into doing something that does not feel like stress or overwhelm. And because it's only a 15 minutes, its quick to do without feeling guilty about taking a break during a busy day.

We've had so much feedback about mindful practices that help to shift the mood when sitting down to colour in

This is where Linda McKenzie's testimonial came in as she shared a love note about her experience with the Powerful Floral Remedies book last year:

"Dearest Tanya, I never imagined The Powerful Floral Remedies Colouring Book would help me to disconnect from work. The best parts of starting this new habit was that I remembered what it felt like to colour in again. 

This experience in itself warmed my heart to the possibilities to 'play' and much like your mother-in-law who inspired you to colour in before dinner, I now enjoy taking a few minutes every day to revive my mind with a drop of relaxation..."

It brings our minds into the present moment with a short activity with a quick burst of satisfaction when the page is complete with all it's colour

Angela said it felt to her like an act of meditation that also exercised her creativity as she played with layering the colours. It relaxed her mind & her body while providing a low impact activity to help her escape from life's demands!

The act of colouring definitely helps to activate deep relaxation in our nervous systems, but don't take my word for it, read about it here>>> parasympathetic nervous system In this explanation the movement of colouring in promotes feelings of calm to our bodies.

Let's also look at some answers about colouring in from our community survey:

Question 1 - Does your mood shift after colouring in?

Yes, colouring in has taken my mind off stress and helped me feel available to do my chores

Question 2 - What exactly happened to you when you coloured in?

My stress slipped away. It felt like I was in the mood to do the tasks ahead of me as soon as I saw the pretty page. It felt similar to a meditative practice, only faster.

These answers both indicate that colouring in relaxes the brain in ways we are only discovering now. It's the repetitive nature of the back & froth motion while laying down colour that allows the brain to enter into a restful state. And if we want to face it or not, life becomes more stressful when the brain is blocked.

Having a low-stake pleasure goal like colouring in enables us to use colouring in as a no-pressure, predictable element when life feels upside down or when the mood in the house shifts. Taking on something fun turns the hard to do into a harmless rewarding activity to do with yourself or with others.

When our nervous system is responsive its far easier to get hard things done simply because stress takes it's toll on the systems of the body. IF you are in constant fight or flight mode, nothing feels safe. And when you eventually get to rest it does not feel like a relaxed rest, its disrupted by the thoughts of all the things you still need to take action on.

So, instead of helping yourself to a big scoop of ice-cream, a bag of sweets, anything unhealthy, or addictive... rather reach for the colouring books & the happy little colouring pencils & counteract the fight-or-flight response when you start feeling triggered.

Give yourself that proverbial mental-emotional break

I know its only offers a temporary escape from the constant cycle of thoughts, the moods, the anxieties & all the stressful stuff - but it is far better than giving in to things that destroy us.

"Hey Barry, if you read this far, what do you think? I'm sure your wife could pinch off a few minutes during the day to colour in. Let me know if you want to get her one of our free colouring books Or if you really want to treat her, sign her up for free to get all the 2024/25 Floral-tober mindful colouring sessions

We would love to help her feel better, get her feeling inspired to get to more tasks all while becoming more & more human as she helps to raise those amazing boys while being the best wife she can be for you.

There is a place where you can enjoy your colouring books with others who love theirs too. And if you feel you need to level up your colouring pages with extra sketches, then we have an entire playlist ready for you with more videos every week during #floraltober2025

Did you know!

We use watercolours, colouring pencils & water soluble colouring pencils to decorate the areas around the illustrations in our colouring books? Have a look at what its all about & how you can do the same in yours!

Take a look here >>> Mindful Colouring Sessions