Play is Powerful
Children are so free in their play. They dance, sing, make-believe, and act goofy for the sheer delight of it. They are not trying to accomplish anything. They are not trying to make an income, amass a huge social media following or win some big award. They play because it is fun - that’s it.
Of course they learn good social lessons via play. But that’s not the intent. Bobby isn’t inviting Billy over to play so that he can really get a handle on conflict resolution. He wants to have fun and share that joy with another person.
I love the following George Bernad Shaw quote, because I sense that it is true.
“We don’t stop playing because we grow old, we grow old because we stop playing.”
Play is a vital part of human experience. It has many benefits: it keeps you young, helps you take yourself less seriously, it is grounding, it is connecting, it soothes your childlike parts (which is where most of our hurt resides), keeps you sober-minded and focused on what matters, helps you manage stress, fosters creativity and problem solving, and can increase anticipatory joy.
All of these factors seem essential to building a meaningful life. So I guess it makes sense that Dr. Stuart Brown, an expert on play, states that “The opposite of play isn’t work, it’s depression.”
Depression: isolation, loneliness, disconnection, feelings of worthlessness, dread, low motivation, lack of meaning, a stuckness and difficulty with problem solving, etc.
This describes many people’s current reality, especially in the modern workplace. And it’s literally killing us.
Think back to when you were a kid. What kinds of things did you enjoy playing? Social play, object play, fantasy play? Whatever you loved doing, I think it would serve us well to reconnect to the themes of our childhood love of play and begin infusing it back into our normal rhythms of life. Play and productivity can go hand in hand.
Often we perceive work and play to be opposites - mutually exclusive. This is to our disadvantage. Seeing work as serious and play as silly is a mistake. Play has been largely removed from adult life and we wonder why overall mental wellness continues to plummet.
Play is powerful and you need it in your life! Try taking yourself a little less seriously, and you might find that areas where you felt stuck start to open up. So get out there and have a good time, just for the heck of it. 🙂
Happy to be in your corner,
Tom Page, LCPC
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