Contrary to convention, play isn’t the preserve of the under-12s, or at least it shouldn’t be. As research and expert opinion suggests fun and games increase our sense of health and vitality, WH makes the case for getting stuck in
Sam De Haas hits the arrow on her phone screen and the opening riff of Deee-Lite’s Groove Is In The Heart fills the bedroom of her south London home. Moving her hips any which way, raising her arms above her head and sweeping side to side, a sense of freedom starts to build. It’s a sharp contrast to 10 minutes earlier, when she was bustling her husband and three-year-old daughter out the door on the nursery run. It’s different, too, to the reality awaiting her half an hour in the future, when she’ll log on to her project management job via the laptop balanced on the kitchen counter. In this moment, though, the 36- year-old’s responsibilities are onpause. It’s playtime, baby.
The idea of playing, right now, might feel like an alien concept. There are reasons aplenty for this – everything from the cost of living crisis to the devastating news headlines on repeat. Life can feel like a stack of tasks to surmount, with little time (or money) for simply… vibing out. It’s a truth borne out in data: the Office for National Statistics (ONS) released a report in 2023 confirming that people in the UK are sadder and more anxious than they were pre-pandemic.
There’s no quick fix. And play, of any description, can’t cure the issues endemic to our culture right now. But speak to researchers and experts at the heart of the subject, and you’ll find a powerful argument that play could be a cheap and accessible health intervention with the potential to turn down the dial on worrying thoughts and increase the pleasure in our days, notching up those elusive feelings of joy.
While ‘play’ might call to mind children’s rough and tumble, races in the park and imaginary friends, it’s a worthwhile use of your adult free time, too. Jacqueline Harding, play researcher, education advisor and author of The Brain That Loves To Play (£24.99, Routledge) defines play as ‘the random and unexpected, which leads us to luxuriate in the moment’. Something done without a concrete objective or goal – fun for fun’s sake. (Yes, you might enjoy that spin class, but if you do it for fat burn or to bag a PB – and force yourself on to the bike when you’re not in the mood, it’s a workout.) ‘The research shows play is a very real preventative measure against poor mental and physical health,’ explains
Dr Harding. ‘There’s emerging evidence that it increases your ability to generate new brain cells throughout life – key to longevity – and also improves memory, sharpens problem-solving and boosts curiosity and your desire to seek out new experiences.’
PAYS TO PLAY
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