PLAY More to Be Happier & Healthier
By giving yourself permission to play with the joyful abandon of childhood, you can reap so many health benefits in your life.
Being Playful is a Good Thing
In our busy lives, many of us focus on work and family commitments first and we never seem to have time for pure fun. Somewhere between childhood and adulthood, we’ve stopped playing. When we do take some leisure time, we're more likely to zone out in front of the TV or computer than engage in fun, rejuvenating play like we did as children. But just because we’re adults, that doesn't mean we have to take ourselves so seriously and make life all about work.
We all need to play!
Why Adults Want to Play
My motto: 'let the inner child outside to play & play today like it is your last.’
Adult play is a time to forget about work and commitments, and to be social in an unstructured, creative way. There doesn’t need to be any point to the activity beyond having fun and enjoying yourself. Play could be goofing off with friends, sharing jokes with a coworker, throwing a Frisbee, dressing up at Halloween with your kids, building a snowman in the yard, playing fetch with a dog, a game of charades at a party, or going for a bike ride with your spouse with no destination in mind.
By giving yourself permission to play with the joyful abandon of childhood, you can reap so many health benefits in your life.
The Benefits of Play
While play is crucial for a child’s development, it is also beneficial for people of all ages. Play can add joy to life, relieve stress, supercharge learning, and connect you to others and the world around you. Play can also make work more productive and pleasurable.
You can play on your own or with a pet, but for greater benefits, play should involve at least one other person, away from the all consuming electronic toys like phones and tablets.
More Benefits
1. Relieve stress. Play is fun and can trigger the release of endorphins, the body’s natural feel-good chemicals. Endorphins promote an overall sense of well-being and can even temporarily relieve pain. The social interaction of playing with family and friends can also help ward off stress and depression.
2. Improve brain function. Playing chess, completing puzzles, or pursuing other fun activities that challenge the brain can help prevent memory problems and improve brain function.
3. Stimulate the mind and boost creativity. Young children often learn best when they are playing—and that principle applies to adults, as well. You’ll learn a new task better when it’s fun and you’re in a relaxed and playful mood. Play can also stimulate your imagination, helping you adapt and problem solve.
4. Improve relationships and your connection to others. Sharing laughter and fun can foster empathy, compassion, trust, and intimacy with others. Developing a playful nature can help you loosen up in stressful situations, break the ice with strangers, make new friends, and form new business relationships.
5. Keep you feeling young and energetic. Playing can boost your energy and vitality and even improve your resistance to disease, helping you feel your best.
In the words of George Bernard Shaw,
“We don’t stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing.”
It’s never too late
Develop your playful, FUN side. Children are incredibly creative, inventive and are constantly learning. Remember that as a child, you were naturally playful; you didn't worry about the reactions of other people. You can reclaim your inner child by setting aside regular, quality playtime. The more you play, joke, and laugh—the easier it becomes.
So my final words to you today reach deep inside and find your INNER CHILD and let them come out to play and play today like it was your last!!