Reroute the mind with a hobby
Pursuing a favourite pastime such as DJ’ing or a physical activity like boxing has myriad benefits, including enhancing one’s neuroplasticity – the brain’s ability to form new synaptic connections. By
The pop-pop-pop melody of life under the ocean kept luring biologist Rosanne Stanway back in search of a different kind of quiet in the early days of South Africa’s Covid-19 lockdown.
Just over three years ago, snorkelling in the chilly ocean waters became one of her favourite pastimes. Because this activity warrants a “complete presence” grounded in the kind of essential awareness that comes with underwater breathing, she’s also found that the experience enriches her mental wellbeing.
“I can’t think about work emails because while I’m curiously looking at seaweed and nudibranchs, I also have to make sure I don’t drown,” she says.
Benefits of hobbies
Hobbies have become far more than just entertaining things to do in your free time.
Not only do certain pastimes offer you more ownership of your time, but they also come with a host of mental health benefits, including a sense of accomplishment and redirecting negative thoughts.
In fact, research conducted in 2020 posits that having a hobby is directly linked to lower levels of depression, with studies conducted in the UK (Fancourt, Opher & De Oliveira, 2020) and Australia (Aggar, Thomas, Gordon, Bloomfield & Baker, 2021) arguing in favour of social prescribing (a non-clinical psychosocial approach that connects people to myriad activities) as a treatment method to improve the mental wellbeing of patients living with mild to moderate depression.
From a mental health perspective, it may be that by participating in hobbies such as making TikTok videos about make-up contouring hacks or wild-ice hunting, many people have inadvertently been benefiting from the novelty and distraction that these activities provide. Early research in the field shows that the work that goes into planning and recording TikTok content presents one form of diversion which, in turn, seems to inspire people to take up a new interest offline.
Creating new neural pathways
Researchers have found that taking up any activity like making music, drawing or even carpentry delivers cognitive stimulation and enhances coping skills and personal agency, all of which are positively associated with mental health.
Hobbies and habits that require you to consistently form new neural pathways also improves neuroplasticity. Neurosurgeons describe neuroplasticity by comparing the human brain to a map: there are many ways to get to a destination, but sometimes you have to change the route you take to get there. Neuroplasticity is the brain’s ability to adapt its activity and structure by forming and using new synaptic connections; hobbies typically provide these new reference points for the brain to recognise.
Participating in activities that by nature involve other people (a group or volunteering activity, for example) further fosters “belonging” while providing sensual engagement, self-expression and creativity.
Building new kinds of confidence
Cryptocurrency activist Lerato Mlambo took up DJ’ing as a hobby in 2021.
Mlambo explains that playing music for others helps her build connections and extend her community.
“I’m generally a shy person who takes long to connect with others. When you’re dealing with the business of life, it’s easy to get caught up in the details of surviving.”
Mlambo found that playing music for others revealed a surprising inner confidence. “While behind the deck, I can be excited, curious and aware. It’s these aspects of DJ’ing I enjoy the most.”
Almost all hobbies make us feel good. Psychologists have found that patients who partake in an activity they enjoy get the added benefit of lower stress levels and blood pressure. Consistently seeking out activities that provide novelty and distraction may also further decrease one’s risk of developing depression.
Museum educator Glynn Alard addressed “years of self-limiting meekness and anxiety” by taking up boxing. “After 42 years of leading a completely sedentary life, I decided to try boxing two years ago,” he says.
Apart from the cardiovascular benefits, Alard found that the activity boosted a number of skill-related parameters of fitness, including coordination, reactivity and agility.
“I needed to take steps so that I could rely on myself to feel safe and confident. Since starting my boxing journey, I’ve not only lost weight, I also feel better about myself because nobody was going to lessen my fear or help me become more self-reliant. I needed to do this for my mental health specifically.”
The benefits of taking up a hobby that compels a neurological rerouting are legion. You may have to don a pair of boxing gloves or headphones to get there, or you may find that, by staying present, the sound of your breathing underwater momentarily quells the vestiges of earthly perplexity.