INFOGRAPHICWELL-BEING

Reel Relaxation

By Josey Murray
Reviewed by Susan Ko, Ph.D.
January 01, 2024
Self-Care Catalog Go Fishing Participants in a study who fished more regularly were 17% less likely to be diagnosed with depression. Source: Wilson, J. J. et al. (2023) Mental Health and Recreational Angling in UK Adult Males: A Cross-Sectional Study. Epidemiologia.

If you’ve been angling to find an enjoyable self-care practice that works, consider fishing. In a study evaluating the connection between fishing and well‑being, researchers asked around 1,800 men in the United Kingdom to report on how often they went fishing and their mental health. What did they find? The more frequently that these men went fishing, the higher their mental well‑being and the lower their depressive and anxious thoughts.