There’s no doubt that these times of social distancing and uncertainty, are prone to give us anxiety, depression, and change our moods entirely. Many people are going through challenging times, from losing their jobs, not knowing how to pay the bills, having love ones suffering from the COVID-19 (even those that have lost one because of it). To being sick and not being able to cover the cost of treatment, among many other reasons. For sure, it is the worst thing that has happened to many people in years. Therefore, mental health problems are very likely to spike amid all this crisis.

Since I went through an episode of depression during the summer of 2019, I knew that given what was coming our way, I needed to find something to canalize my energy and avoid falling into the void that many are currently suffering.

I knew that if I didn’t look for ways to continue to feel active, a relapse was most likely. I had never suffered from depression before this past summer, and I am confident that I don’t want to go through it again. It was painful, self-destructive, it delayed many of my plans, and worst of all, I lost people I loved.

I had tried meditation and yoga at different moments during the past few months, but it didn’t satisfy me in the way I was looking for. I needed something that could give me instant gratification that could consume my time (in a positive way). In the end, I wanted to feel productive. To be clear, I’m not saying that those that do yoga or meditation are not being productive or anything close to that. I’m just expressing my personal experience.

Therefore, in my search for something to do while in self-quarantine, I found knitting (and crocheting). I must say it has been life-changing in many ways.

As stated by Corkhill and Riley (2014), “[k]nitting is both process and product-oriented. As a process, knitting encompasses repetitive tasks that require physical and cognitive skills.” Even though there’s a learning curve, it not a difficult skill to learn, and best of all, it is progressive in the sense that its creative potential is endless. They continue by saying that as a “skill, knitting can be fairly simple, the continuous looping of yarn over a needle to make a stitch, or incredibly complex, through the use of multiple needles, stitch combinations, and different yearns to create intricate patterns.”

It can be calming, meditative, and therapeutic. After-all, knitting is intended for the creation of an end product. Thus, giving a sense of accomplishment.

There’s not a lot of peer-reviewed research concentrating on the benefits of needlecraft (knitting, crochet, etc.). Still, the ones that exist tend to agree on its cognitive and emotional benefits. Much of the research has focused on older people. However, the studies have shown, through correlational evidence, that these activities were associated with decreased odds of experiencing age related mild cognitive impairment. Furthermore, some evidence has shown that knitting predicted lowered levels of dementia.

Not all research, however, has been in older adults. While exploring the effects of anxiety management in patients with anorexia nervosa, a research reported that knitting was beneficial in reducing feelings of anxiety. Among the results they found, the patients said to have felt it lessened the intensity of their fears and thoughts, that it had calming and therapeutic effects, and that it gave them a sense of pride and accomplishment.

In sum, the few empirical research that has been done about the benefits of knitting or crocheting has agreed to suggest that it has excellent potential as an adjunctive therapeutic modality, mainly in treating anxiety and depression in those that are prone to suffer from it. And let’s be honest, at the moment we are all likely to suffer from it.

Now, I’ll run you through my process:

First of all, I began by knitting a scarf — to be honest, I had already tried knitting several months before, precisely with a scarf. I never got the hang of it, but I thought this time of isolation would be a great time to try it again. To be honest, knitting a scarf isn’t the most exciting project I’ve done. To be even more honest, there were moments I was utterly bored. Nevertheless, I kept on doing it and finished it (right on time for summer in Florida, where I won’t need it at all).

My first finished project. It ended up being shorted than what I wanted, but that’s what happens when you run out of yarn.

Afterward, I decided to continue with some socks. I love long socks, especially when they are of different colors and designs — making socks was one of my motivations to learn how to knit. For years now, I always use long socks and love not combining them with my clothing; I just see them as independent but complementary to my wardrobe (if they combine it’s by pure coincidence); I use them depending on my mood of the day. However, the fact that making them was taking so long and the idea that whenever I finished one sock, I had to start the same project all over again, did not motivate me at all. Therefore, I am now stuck with an unfinished sock in my yarn storage.

My unfinished socks :-/

However, the decision to stop knitting socks, and begin with a teddy bear patterned I had found online, changed my experience and appreciation of this art entirely. For some reason, it began to feel purposeful. I began to feel more relax and with a broader sense of accomplishment (something that was a bit lacking since I currently have two master’s degrees in political science and can’t seem to find a job).

Every part that I completed of the teddy bear motivated me to keep going because I looked forward to the finished result. I woke up every day wanting to work on it, to see its progress. And yes, there sometimes that the process was a bit frustrating, as everything in life, but they were too few to hinder my excitement for the project at hand.

My teddy first stuffed animal (name still pending).

Managing to finish this project, receiving so much positive feedback, really motivated me to continue pursuing this fantastic skill. But this time, through projects that I knew, I would not only enjoy the process of making but the final product as well.

Since most stuffed animals are done with crochet (one hook) instead of knitting (two needles), I decided to teach myself — as I had done already with knitting — to crochet. It was relatively easy, much more comfortable than knitting, and I began to crochet stuffed animals.

It has been a very satisfying process. It’s like mind-numbing, hours go by, and I feel relax and at peace with what I’m doing. And each projects is like a new adventure, where I learn new skills and explore new techniques.

Even though I’m aware there’s a crisis outside, my attention is not on that anymore, but instead, it’s on the project at hand. Which is gratifying on many levels.

The first thing I did was an octopus, then a lion, followed by a puppy and, most recently, a giraffe. I have people even asking to buy my stuffed animals for baby-showers and gifts they need to buy. So, it’s not only a relaxing hobby but a potential business as well (I’m not going to become a millionaire from it, but it’s nice to receive that type of acknowledgment).

My first crochet project.

My second project (crochet)

My third project. This was also the first project I made to give as a gift.

My latest project and my gift to my sister for her bday this week.

In the end, learning how to do this has helped me concentrate my time and energy on something else other than reading the news and worrying about the incompetence of our government. I can’t promise you that it will relieve you of all your worries, but you should at least try it and give it a real chance. There’s plenty of free material to learn online, and you can always reach out, and I can share with you what I’ve used to teach myself. We must be physically distant but socially conscious and together. Please, don’t let these difficult times destroy the best of you. Let’s stick together and help each other. Needle-crafting has helped me, and I wanted to share this with all of you. I hope it can do for you what it has done for me.

Take care!