How creative arts support mental health in daily life
Supporting your mental health doesn’t always require something complicated.
Noelle Haro-Gomez
EDITOR'S NOTE: The second workshop in this series takes place Tuesday, March 3. Register here if you wish to take part.
Stress is part of daily life. Whether it’s deadlines, caregiving, studying or simply trying to keep up with everything, many of us carry mental tension without even realizing it.
The good news? Supporting your mental health doesn’t always require something complicated. Research shows that creative activities like drawing, music, movement or mindful practices can be simple, powerful tools you use every day to feel more balanced and focused.
The World Health Organization has recognized arts engagement as an important contributor to mental health promotion and illness prevention. Because creative activities are low-cost, adaptable and welcoming, they are especially powerful in community and university settings. They don’t replace therapy, but they complement it by helping build resilience before stress becomes overwhelming.
Participating in group dance, music or shared art-making builds belonging and reduces isolation.
Noelle Haro-Gomez
Creating helps calm your body
Studies consistently show that engaging in creative activities lowers stress. In one well-known study, just 45 minutes of art-making significantly reduced cortisol, the body’s main stress hormone. Structured, repetitive activities, like pattern drawing or coloring, have also been shown to reduce anxiety. A large review found that more than 80% of arts-based interventions reported reduced stress.
The key insight: It’s not about talent. It’s about giving your nervous system a chance to slow down.
Creativity helps you process emotions
When emotions feel overwhelming or hard to explain, creative activities offer another outlet. Research shows that art-making can improve mood and reduce rumination, especially when used as a gentle distraction. Whether it’s journaling, sketching, dancing in your living room or listening deeply to music, creativity gives your mind space to reset.
Structured, repetitive activities, like pattern drawing or coloring, have also been shown to reduce anxiety.
Noelle Haro-Gomez
It refreshes focus and mental clarity
Creative activities can also sharpen attention. Light doodling has been shown to reduce mind-wandering and improve memory and focus. If you’ve ever found yourself more engaged during a meeting while sketching in the margins, that’s not accidental. Creative expression can restore attention without adding more mental strain.
Creativity Builds Connection
Mental health isn’t just individual, it’s social. Participating in group dance, music or shared art-making builds belonging and reduces isolation. Research shows Tai Chi improves psychological well-being, and newer studies suggest dance can be as effective — or even more effective — than other forms of exercise for psychological and cognitive health. Creating together strengthens both personal and collective well-being.
Creating together strengthens both personal and collective well-being.
Noelle Haro-Gomez
Simple ways to use creative arts in daily life
You don’t need a studio or special equipment to benefit. Here are easy ways to bring creative arts into your routine:
- Play music and move your body while cooking or cleaning.
- Keep a small sketchbook or journal for quick emotional check-ins.
- Take a short mindful movement and stretch break during work or study sessions.
- Join a community workshop or class to combine creativity with connection.
Even small, consistent moments of creative engagement can make a difference.
CALM (Creative Arts for Lowering Mental Stress) workshops
If you’d like to experience these benefits in a supportive community setting, the Arts for Health & Wellness Initiative at the Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health, in collaboration with the Andrew Weil Center for Integrative Medicine, is offering the CALM (Creative Arts for Lowering Mental Stress) workshop series.
These community-based sessions introduce practical, research-informed approaches to stress reduction, including:
- Tai chi and qi gong
- Zen doodling
- Healing dance
- Sound bath meditation
The workshops are open to all U of A Health Sciences participants and are held at the Andrew Weil Center for Integrative Medicine. Register Here.
Creativity isn’t a luxury, it’s a daily resource. Sometimes, supporting your mental health starts with something simple: a pen, a song, a breath, a small movement or a game.
About the Author
Yunjia Yang, PhD, is a postdoctoral researcher and instructor who leads the Arts for Health and Wellness Initiative at the University of Arizona Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health. She earned her doctorate in applied intercultural arts research with a minor in public health from the University of Arizona, where her dissertation examined the effects of improvisation and choreography on older adults at risk for dementia. She has over a decade of experience teaching dance, tai chi and yoga, and she specializes in using embodied and mindfulness-based arts to promote healthy aging, cognitive vitality and emotional resilience. Her research and choreography, which have been featured in national conferences, peer-reviewed journals and community health initiatives, reflect a commitment to bridging artistic creativity and human performance to enhance holistic well-being across cultures and generations.