Many of the parents are overwhelmed with the responsibilities of parenting and taking care of young children. Whether they stay at home or work, these parents are running on a hamster wheel and getting nowhere fast when it comes to their own well-being.

By neglecting opportunities to recreate and play, in isolation or with their kids, they are starving for a vacation from the “shoulds”. Addiction specialist Alan Marlatt calls this an imbalance of the should-want principle. Should activities are things we think we must do, but we don’t really enjoy (grocery shopping, laundry, house cleaning). Want activities are things that we actually enjoy doing, leaving us with a feeling of satisfaction and pleasure, so much so that we want to do them again (running, reading, dancing, singing out loud). When Should activities dominate our lives, we are at risk for more physical and mental disorders like heart disease, cancers and stroke.

The primary goal of any play experience is not the outcome, but the momentary bliss, engagement and unconscious exploration and discovery. Playful people experience the following benefits:

  • A vacation from worrying
  • Psychological resources
  • A sense of identity and pride
  • Socialization
  • Self-confidence
  • Opportunities to be one with the music
  • Novel experiences lead to exploration, which leads to discovery, which leads to mastery: play is self-actualizing, which is at the top of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.

 

Michael Frisch imparts the wisdom that just as people need food to eat and air to breathe in order to survive and be happy, they also need to recreate or play. Doing so is refreshing, rejuvenating and psychologically replenishing, the equivalent of thousands of brain kisses. Don’t you deserve that?

And play not only fortifies your personal well-being, but it also leads to greater marital satisfaction and family functioning. By participating in play activities, family systems become more cohesive, adaptable and more effective communicators. Family leisure time can be routine or novel. Leisure time rituals or routines build family cohesion and communication, they require fewer resources, they are low cost and accessible (Think family dinner, board games, movie night with popcorn, playing catch in the yard, dancing to music in the living room). Novel leisure-time activities build adaptability and they are out of the ordinary and less frequent. Because they are more unpredictable, families have greater opportunities to face challenges together, cope, adapt and, solve problems (Think family vacations, camping, fishing, special activities or outdoor festivals).

Source:

http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/parent-pulse/201204/building-your-parent-playlist