Real-world examples of mindfulness coloring book techniques that actually calm your brain

Everyday examples of mindfulness coloring book techniques

Let’s start with what you actually do when you sit down with a coloring book. Here are some everyday, real examples of mindfulness coloring book techniques you can plug straight into your routine.

Picture this: It’s 9:30 p.m., you’re wiped out, and your brain is still replaying the day like a highlight reel you didn’t ask for. You pull out a simple mandala coloring book, choose three colors, and decide: I’m just going to focus on how this pencil feels on the page for ten minutes. That tiny decision is a classic example of mindfulness coloring.

Other real examples include:

• Using a nature-themed coloring book during your lunch break and pairing each leaf you color with one slow breath.
• Keeping a small travel coloring pad in your bag and doing five minutes of coloring while waiting at the doctor’s office instead of scrolling your phone.
• Printing a single, simple pattern at work and using it as a five-minute reset between intense Zoom meetings.

All of these are examples of mindfulness coloring book techniques because they combine intentional attention (what you notice) with non-judgmental awareness (how you relate to what you notice). You’re not trying to make a masterpiece; you’re training your brain to stay with the moment instead of spiraling.

Example of a 10-minute grounding coloring routine

If you like structure, here’s a step-by-step example of a short grounding routine you can adapt. No timers, no rules police—just a gentle framework.

You sit at the table, close your laptop, and put your phone on silent. You open your coloring book to a page that isn’t too detailed—something with medium-sized shapes so you’re not squinting. You choose three or four colors that feel calming to you—maybe blues, greens, and a soft gray.

You start by taking three slow breaths, noticing the rise and fall of your chest. Then you place the pencil on the page and simply track the movement: the sound of the tip on paper, the way the color slowly fills a shape, the pressure in your fingers.

Your mind will wander—about dinner, tomorrow’s meeting, that awkward text. The mindfulness technique comes in when you notice the wandering and gently bring your attention back to the color and the motion of your hand. No scolding yourself. Just, “Oh, there goes my mind again,” and back to the page.

This is one of the best examples of mindfulness coloring book techniques because it’s portable, realistic, and doesn’t require any special talent. You’re training your attention in short, doable bursts.

Color-by-breath: A breathing-focused example of mindfulness coloring

One of my favorite examples of mindfulness coloring book techniques combines coloring with paced breathing, which is often used in anxiety and stress management.

Here’s how a color-by-breath session might look in real life:

You choose a pattern with repeating shapes—tiles, petals, waves, or tiny squares. You decide that on every inhale, you trace the outline of a shape with your eyes. On every exhale, you color a small section.

Inhale: eyes follow the edge of a petal.

Exhale: you slowly fill in part of that petal with color.

You repeat this for five to ten minutes. Your breathing slows down, your heart rate gently follows, and your nervous system gets the message: we’re safe right now.

This kind of color-by-breath practice lines up with research on paced breathing and stress reduction. The National Institutes of Health notes that mind-body practices like breathing exercises and mindfulness can help people manage stress and anxiety. Coloring gives your hands and eyes something soothing to do while your breath does the heavy lifting.

Real examples of mindfulness coloring for anxiety and racing thoughts

If your brain tends to go into overdrive—especially at night—more structured examples of mindfulness coloring book techniques can help anchor you.

Imagine you’re lying awake, thoughts ping-ponging between past mistakes and future disasters. You get up, turn on a small lamp, and open a coloring book to a page with repeating patterns. You decide on this simple rule: one thought, one shape.

Every time you notice a worry, you silently name it (“money,” “work,” “health”) and then color in one small section. When that section is done, you let that thought go—for now—and move on to the next shape.

You’re not trying to solve the problem. You’re giving your mind a safe container: I see the worry, I acknowledge it, I color a shape, I come back to the present.

This is a very practical example of mindfulness coloring for anxiety: you’re pairing awareness of your thoughts with a repetitive, calming action. It echoes mindfulness-based approaches used in therapy, where you learn to observe thoughts instead of fusing with them.

Organizations like the American Psychological Association highlight that mindfulness practices can help people relate differently to stress and anxious thinking. Coloring is simply an accessible doorway into that same skill set.

Sensory-focused examples of mindfulness coloring book techniques

Another powerful way to use coloring for stress relief is to lean into the sensory side of it. These examples of mindfulness coloring book techniques focus less on the final picture and more on what your senses are picking up.

You might:

• Notice the slight drag of a colored pencil versus the smooth glide of a gel pen.
• Pay attention to the sound of markers tapping the table or the soft scratch of pencil on paper.
• Feel the weight of the book in your lap, the temperature of the room, or the way your shoulders drop as you settle in.

Here’s a concrete example: You’re coloring a forest scene. Instead of obsessing over staying inside the lines, you decide to stay with one sense at a time. For two minutes, you focus only on the feeling in your hand and fingers. The next two minutes, you tune in to the sounds around you: the pencil, the air conditioner, maybe a distant car. Then you switch to noticing colors and light.

This kind of sensory rotation is one of the best examples of mindfulness coloring book techniques for people who struggle with traditional seated meditation. You’re still training attention, but in a way that feels more active and less abstract.

Theme-based examples: Nature, affirmations, and emotion coloring

The content of the coloring page can also support your mental health goals. Here are some real examples of how people use different themes as mindfulness tools.

Nature-based coloring for nervous system reset

You pick a page with mountains, leaves, or ocean waves. As you color, you quietly imagine the place as if you’re there: the air temperature, the sounds, the smells. You might recall a favorite hike or beach trip and let those memories blend with the colors you choose.

Research on nature and mental health—like work summarized by the National Institutes of Health—suggests that even images of nature can have a calming effect. Combining those images with mindful attention is a gentle way to tap into that.

Affirmation coloring pages

Another example of mindfulness coloring book techniques uses pages that include short phrases: “I am safe,” “One step at a time,” “This feeling will pass.”

You color around the words slowly, and every few minutes you read the phrase out loud or silently. You’re not trying to force yourself to believe it 100%. You’re just letting the words sit in your mind while your body settles through the coloring motion.

This is especially helpful for people who find affirmations cheesy or uncomfortable. The coloring gives your brain something concrete to do while the phrase gently repeats in the background.

Emotion-mapping pages

Here’s a more creative example of mindfulness coloring: You draw or choose a simple outline—maybe a body silhouette, a big heart, or a blank mandala. You assign colors to emotions: blue for sadness, red for anger, yellow for joy, green for calm, gray for numbness.

Then you color in the shapes based on how you feel right now. No overthinking. Just, “Where do I feel this in my body or in my day?” and color accordingly.

When you’re done, you pause and simply notice the result: Wow, there’s a lot of red today, or I didn’t realize how much gray I’ve been carrying. You’re not judging it; you’re witnessing it. That witnessing is a core mindfulness skill, and this is a very visual example of how coloring can support it.

Social and digital examples of mindfulness coloring in 2024–2025

Mindfulness coloring isn’t just something you do alone at your kitchen table anymore. In 2024–2025, people are weaving it into community spaces, workplaces, and even virtual meetups.

Group coloring circles

Some workplaces and community centers now offer short mindful coloring breaks—think 20 minutes in a quiet room with shared supplies. You sit with others, agree to keep conversation minimal or gentle, and color together.

This kind of group practice is a real example of mindfulness coloring used as a low-pressure wellness activity. It’s especially helpful for people who feel intimidated by formal meditation classes but still want a shared, calming experience.

Virtual coloring and co-working sessions

Online, you’ll find people joining video calls where everyone works quietly on something—coding, writing, or yes, coloring. You can join a call, mute your mic, and spend part of the session practicing one of the examples of mindfulness coloring book techniques we’ve talked about: color-by-breath, sensory focus, or emotion-mapping.

Being “alone together” like this can make it easier to actually follow through on your intention to relax, instead of getting distracted by chores or social media.

Digital coloring apps with mindfulness prompts

There are also coloring apps that now include mindfulness reminders—short prompts like “Notice your shoulders,” “Relax your jaw,” or “Take three slow breaths before choosing your next color.”

If you use a tablet or phone, you can turn this into a mindful practice by:

• Turning off notifications.
• Setting a gentle timer for 10–15 minutes.
• Choosing a simple design and applying the same breathing or sensory techniques you’d use on paper.

While digital coloring doesn’t give you the same tactile feedback, it’s still a practical example of mindfulness coloring in a tech-heavy world—especially if you’re trying to replace late-night doomscrolling with something kinder to your nervous system.

How to build your own mindfulness coloring ritual

At this point, you’ve seen a lot of examples of mindfulness coloring book techniques. The next step is to turn them into a small ritual that fits your real life, not some idealized version of it.

You might:

• Pick a time anchor: five minutes with coffee in the morning, ten minutes after work, or a short session before bed.
• Choose a location that feels safe and reasonably quiet: a corner of the couch, your desk with the screen turned off, a balcony, or even your parked car during a break.
• Decide on one technique to experiment with for a week: color-by-breath, sensory focus, emotion-mapping, or affirmation pages.

Then keep your expectations tiny. Your goal is not to become a better artist. Your goal is to give your nervous system a short, predictable pocket of calm.

Many people find that after a week or two, they start noticing side benefits: slightly better sleep, feeling a bit less reactive, or having a healthier way to ride out a stressful moment instead of immediately reaching for their phone.

Resources like Mayo Clinic and WebMD discuss how creative activities and mindfulness practices can support stress management. Coloring sits right at that intersection: creative enough to be engaging, simple enough that you can do it even when you’re exhausted.

FAQ: Real examples of mindfulness coloring book techniques

Q: What are some simple examples of mindfulness coloring book techniques for beginners?
A: Start with very small, realistic steps. One example is choosing a single page and deciding to color just one section per day while paying attention to your breath. Another is a three-color rule: pick three calming colors and use only those, focusing on how each shade feels as you lay it down. You can also try a five-sense check-in: before you start coloring, name one thing you can see, hear, feel, smell, and taste, then keep a soft awareness of your senses as you color.

Q: Can you give an example of using coloring for panic or high anxiety?
A: During a spike of anxiety, find a simple design with larger shapes. Set a tiny goal: color one shape per breath cycle—inhale as you place the pencil, exhale as you fill in the shape. Keep your eyes on the pencil tip and silently say “in” on the inhale, “out” on the exhale. This concrete, repeatable pattern is a very grounding example of mindfulness coloring during intense moments.

Q: Are adult coloring books actually helpful for stress, or is it just hype?
A: They’re not magic, but they can be a useful tool. Studies on adult coloring suggest it can reduce anxiety and improve mood for many people, especially when designs are structured (like mandalas) and when you bring mindful attention to the activity. It’s not a replacement for therapy or medical treatment, but as part of a broader stress management toolkit—alongside sleep, movement, and social support—it can be surprisingly effective.

Q: Do I need special “mindfulness” coloring books, or can I use any book?
A: You can absolutely use any coloring book you like. Pages labeled as “mindfulness” often feature repeating patterns, nature scenes, or affirmations, which can make it easier to practice the techniques described here. But the mindful part comes from how you color, not the marketing on the cover. A kid’s dinosaur book can work just as well if you bring the same kind of focused, non-judgmental attention.

Q: How long should I color to feel a difference?
A: Many people notice a shift in about 5–15 minutes. The key is consistency more than duration. Short, regular sessions—say, ten minutes most days—often work better than waiting for one long session you never quite get around to. Treat it like brushing your teeth for your mind: small, steady habits that keep stress from building up.

Mindfulness coloring doesn’t ask you to sit perfectly still on a cushion or clear your mind of all thoughts. It just asks you to show up with your pencils, your page, and a little willingness to pay attention. The real power lies in these small, everyday examples of mindfulness coloring book techniques—and in the quiet, doable ways they help your nervous system remember what calm feels like.