Illustration: Painting in an office room. (Image via Thomas Deir Studios)

How to overcome stress during work? Stare at a painting: Study

While working hard to pay bills, it is usual for us to reach a breakdown moment sometimes. Maybe our workload piles up or simply there is not enough time to do the assignment while our supervisor keeps tailing us.

Being stressful is normal, but not for long. So instead of relying on pills and other mumbo jumbos, a study revealed that there is a way to overcome your stress without you realize. What is that? Painting.

We are trapped in a cubicle, or on a floor level where it is hard for us to see the landscape or to enjoy the view? Take a long stare at a painting nearby you, said researchers from the University of South Australia. Especially when you are working at an office with little exposure to the natural light.

The experiment tested 91 people from offices and universities to see how admiring artworks would help them to overcome stress due to work. After a month, the participants showed a decrease in their stress levels by 40%!

Not only for stress but also admiring artwork is said to enhance focus and concentration on a task. How is it possible? According to a study by the University of London, a beautiful painting triggers a joyous feeling in our hearts. According to a journal from Art Therapy: Journal of the American Art Therapy Association, 45 minutes of creative activities could lessen our brain from pressure, quoting from the study by Drexel University regarding stress levels and visual arts.

With that said, it is certain that admiring artwork surely has a correlation with the employees’ productive behavior. Thus, offices should start hanging artworks on their walls instead of graphs and other things that could only put your employees under pressure.

Source: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-7464253/HEALTH-NOTES-natural-way-end-stress-office.html