Analog Hobbies Are Having a Moment — and Our Nervous Systems Are Here For It

As Americans have reached an all-time high glued to their electronic devices (7 hours and 4 minutes per day, to be exact), many of us are exhausted from the never-ending online content in an AI-dependent world. Digital exhaustion has led to adopting something old that feels new again. Analog living is trending this year, and an interest in hands-on hobbies has reached an all-time high. From Los Angeles to Lyme, Connecticut, people are registering for cake painting, knitting and card-making workshops instead of doomscrolling or binge-watching the latest Netflix series. Junk journaling — a mixed-media, handmade book created with sentimental items such as ticket stubs, old photographs, notes and letters — has over 1 million posts on TikTok. These activities are popping up not just in local libraries but at retail stores, cafes and even breweries. Danei Edelen, a writer and executive director for the National Alliance on Mental Illness, Northern Kentucky (NAMI NKY), said she was exposed to these active hands-on activities early in life. Her mother crocheted washcloths, and her grandmother crafted quilts and crocheted doilies. She remembers them creating alone and during family gatherin...