Mental health is an immensely important topic that Children’s HopeChest integrates into our holistic model of caring for orphaned and vulnerable children. Many of the children we serve have experienced trauma or loss in their lives, and part of addressing those wounds is having open discussions about the healing process. This Wednesday, October 10th, is World Mental Health Day, and we want to share how mental health is woven into the many ways that HopeChest holistically cares for the children and young adults we serve.
Join us this year in Coloring for Calm!
In Russia, Disciplers from HopeChest Ministry Centers visit orphanages we partner with once a month to encourage the children, mentor them, and take the time to get to know their stories. One of these disciplers had the wonderful idea of bringing anti-stress coloring pages for the children to use to inspire feelings of calm and creativity. Swiping this idea, HopeChest has made coloring pages for you to use with facts about how HopeChest addresses mental health in each of the countries we partner with.
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“When I visited the orphanage, I brought some anti-stress and relaxation coloring pages, but this time I decided to combine it with a useful relaxation technique.
As you probably know, coloring is useful in general as it is a rhythmic activity that calms the brain of all ages and of all abilities. As for anti-stress coloring books, they are used as an alternative to meditation, as a means of relaxation, and as a calming tool. It can help a child focus on the act of coloring intricate pictures for hours on end instead of focusing on troubling thoughts. They can help with a number of emotional and mental health issues.
Coloring has intellectual benefits as well. It utilizes areas of the brain that enhance focus and concentration. It also helps with problem solving and organizational skills. This can help us replace negative thoughts with positive and pleasant ones. It promotes creativity and flexible thinking. So, when I learned all those benefits about anti-stress coloring books, I immediately decided that we must try them with the children. They enjoyed them immensely as everyone tried to be creative and make their drawing different from the others.”
– Discipler who brought coloring pages for children at the orphanage
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When you click on one of the photos below, you will be redirected to a coloring page that you can download and print of that photo! We hope you (or your kiddos) enjoy a moment of calm as you color these photos. You can also help us spread awareness of the importance of mental health by following these four steps!
1) Click on the photo you want to color – download and print the coloring page!
2) Enjoy coloring the photo!
3) Share the photo on Facebook or Instagram on October 10th!
4) Use the hashtags #childrenshopechest #WorldMentalHealthDay and #CHCcolorsforcalm so we can see your photos and share them in our stories!
