Annotated Bibliography: Knitting As A Therapy For Depression

"Knitting as a Therapy for Depression." MIAMI. 9 July 2009. Web. 25 Oct. 2015. Make it and Mend it is a website created by four women who banded together to compile information about crafting. In their article they explore how knitting can be used as an effective tool to combat anxiety, depression, and even manage pain. The article opens by telling about a physiotherapist who worked for NHS whose studies show that despite using high doses of medications those who struggles with anxiety, social disorders, and depression remain; the brain needs a distraction in order not to dwell on issues that we can’t control. After being worn out by the disconnect, she entered the crafting world and got an overwhelming response to how crafting, specifically

“The benefits of knitting for personal and social wellbeing in adulthood: findings from an international survey”. British Journal of Occupational Therapy, 76(2), 50-57. Recent attention has been focused on the effects of hobbies on overall health and mental wellness, but not much has been placed on the effect of specific tasks and hobbies. This study evaluates the positive impact that knitting has on the social and emotional health of any particular person and it’s potential for being considered a method of occupational therapy. To gather information, a survey was conducted on a knitting website where over 3,500 knitters, mainly white woman, who claimed that knitting was used for stress relief and as a creative outlet. With a clear correlation made between knitting and an overall feeling of wellbeing, as well as a major positive emotional boost when knitting in a group, the survey showed that there is an obvious benefit to be had from knitting; deserving more in depth

Web. 27 Oct. 2015. This post opens by stating the benefits of knitting as a therapy. Then there are a series of references to individuals who have self-medicated with knitting. The first- a woman diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, the second, a woman with a serious eating disorder who left treatment early and began a career in knitting, and the third, a woman diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis who began knitting to cope with the depression of having to stay home from her job. The next section of the article delves into the life of a woman whose daughter was born with a heart defect, requiring extensive hospital stays and treatments. When she dedicated her time to knitting instead of just waiting she found meaningful peace and then dedicated her time to teaching others who were in the hospital how to knit. Her lessons eventually turned into the non-profit Knitwell that taught nurses and people in the waiting rooms how to knit, and kept women available to help them fix mistakes and provide them with materials. The next portion of the post explores the use of knitting to keep the brain healthy and strong. The following piece explains the physical effect that knitting has, lowering blood pressure, evening of breathing and lowered stress hormones. Also the usage of math and pattern recognition has been theorized to aid in early childhood development. The final section of this blog post delves