People seek solace in ‘retro’ pastimes: researcher
People are turning to bread making and other creative outlets to find meaning during the COVID-19 pandemic, says the University of Alberta’s chairwoman of occupational therapy.
With gyms and recreational centres closed to limit the spread of the novel coronavirus, people are seeking pastimes that can be done at home, Dr. Mary Forhan said Wednesday.
“We’re finding that people are seeking those easily accessible, what we may call retro or old-fashioned activities, because they make us feel good,” Forhan said.
“For people who have grown up with easy access to movies, the internet and blogging, this is something new.”
While the activities may be new to some, the practice of seeking out creative outlets during stressful times isn’t. Forhan said it is rooted in occupational therapy, a medical practice that helps people overcome physical and mental barriers that are preventing them from returning to work and other activities. In the early years of the profession, therapists found therapeutic activities for soldiers wounded in the First World War.
“(Creative outlets) help distract people from some of the unpleasant things that are happening in their lives or negative thoughts that are going on,” she said. “It helps temporarily for people to focus on something positive, something that demands their attention and something that they feel is a creative outlet.”
After weeks of lockdown because of the pandemic, people are growing more frustrated and looking for purpose in activities, Forhan said.
Bread-making, specifically, offers many benefits besides smelling and tasting good.
“There’s just this whole process of nurturing and creating and doing something with your hands,” she said. “There’s something to be said about how the hands and the heart and the mind are connected and how that brings some sense of peace and productivity and accomplishment.”
While bread-making may be catching the most attention on social media, Forhan said she’s also hearing of more people taking up knitting and other activities like scrapbooking or gardening.
On Wednesday, Forhan hosted a free online presentation with tips and strategies to help people cope with the pandemic. Her presentation was part of an online series called Rehab Med Live, which is organized by the university ’s faculty of rehabilitation medicine.
Forhan said she hopes the series allows the public to learn more about occupational therapy.