Maybe boredom is selfcare for the brain!

Being bored gets a bad rap. Boredom is something to be avoided at all costs and it’s getting easier and easier to avoid. As soon as the suggestion of boredom enters our mind we can pick up our phones and connect instantly with virtually anyone, play games, read, research something, go shopping…. The possibilities are infinite. And that’s before we’ve had a chance to even think about leaving the house to seek stimulation in the real world! But is the avoidance of boredom actually useful? I’m going to reflect on some reasons why it might not be and share some ways in which boredom itself can be viewed as useful – productive even!

A break from stimulation

Lets face it, the world is A LOT right now and our little brains are constantly reacting to news or endless notifications. The reality is that we can only think about one thing at one time. Being bored provides a break for our brains, a space in which the mind can wonder, make connections, process information. Maybe boredom is selfcare for the brain!

An engine for creativity

When we are less stimulated and our mind is free to wonder it opens up brain space for imagination and different ways of thinking. How many times have you heard about writers and other creatives retreating to the country or a quiet place in order to enhance their creativity?

An engine for change and growth

When we are bored, maybe in life generally, with a job or a relationship, we may become motivated to do something differently to alleviate the boredom. Viewed in this way, the feeling of boredom is motivating as it provides useful information that we need a change.

A lesson in self soothing

Sometimes in counselling the work can be learning to increase our tolerance, for example learning to tolerate feelings of anxiety or uncertainty; tolerating imperfection; tolerating upsetting and traumatic memories to help process them. I think there is a parallel with boredom – can you tolerate it? Can you stand to feel the boredom without always being compelled to act to remove it?

Learning to tolerate boredom increases our self-control and our ability to self-regulate. If you’re a parent perhaps you are motivated to entertain your children so that they are never bored, but maybe a small amount of boredom every now and then is useful.

What do you think? Let me know in the comments 🙂

Simon