In recent years, a phenomenon has been spreading that has become something of a hobby for children and teens \u2014 making slime. Many children love making slime, exploring its ingredients, and perfecting it. Those who don\u2019t enjoy crafting it themselves, enjoy buying it (in stores or from friends!) and endlessly fidgeting with it. I paused for a moment to reflect on this slime \u2014 where did it come from, and why? <\/p>\n\n
“Slime” is a general name for various types of sticky, stretchy, and very flexible masses, usually made from glue, color, soap (often laundry detergent, but not exclusively), and additional ingredients like glitter, foam beads, and more.<\/p>\n\n
Experienced slimers (yes, it\u2019s a thing among young YouTubers \u2014 Google it) also recommend adding borax, a sodium salt of boric acid, which helps bind the various components (an emulsifier).<\/p>\n\n
So, what’s the deal with slime? Why are so many kids and teens \u2014 even those who normally aren’t drawn to working with materials \u2014 so in love with mixing, kneading, stretching, inflating, creating, and experimenting with tangible substances? Playing with glue? Isn\u2019t that all for \u201clittle kids\u201d? <\/p>\n\n
Holding the honorable title of \u201cSenior Assistant to Expert Slimers,\u201d I\u2019ve logged quite a few hours in the clinic helping my young clients make slime. Before offering my own thoughts, I invite you to recall the things you loved creating as a child at home \u2014 in other words, the things that used to drive your parents nuts. Need help remembering? Here\u2019s a recipe: <\/p>\n\n
A crinkly sandwich bag containing a piece of solid soap, warm water, and the insides of a dismantled marker (you know, that sponge wrapped in clear plastic holding the soul of the late marker). Starting to sound familiar? How many hours did you squish those satisfying little bags? How many exploded in your room or your schoolbag? <\/p>\n\n
Remember glue bracelets? You\u2019d spread a circle of white glue on your outstretched palm, wait for it to dry clear, then peel and roll it into a \u201cbracelet\u201d (that you couldn\u2019t remove without tearing). Remember duct tape balls? Rubber band balls? (That trend is making a comeback too.) <\/p>\n\n
In short \u2014 while we\u2019ve been busy with \u201creal life\u201d as adults, we\u2019ve somewhat forgotten that we too used to do similar things in our childhoods \u2014 to fulfill a deep, primal need that, in my view, only intensifies with age (beyond the basic and valid need to fight boredom): the need to feel, knead, touch, to connect with something real in our hands. And if it\u2019s something we made ourselves \u2014 even better.<\/p>\n\n
These needs are naturally met when we\u2019re little. From the moment we\u2019re born, we receive deep, sustained touch \u2014 we\u2019re held constantly and physically close to our parents\u2019 hearts. Later, we\u2019re allowed to eat with our hands (and our whole body). Think of how adorable it is when toddlers cover themselves in finger paint, mud, or whatever they get their hands on (even if it makes you cringe \u2014 think how many people you know paid good money for professional cake smash photo shoots for their 1-year-olds, even those who hate mess. But hey \u2014 it is photogenic and cute!). And of course, in the early preschool years, we\u2019re introduced to all kinds of creative materials \u2014 paints, clay, dough. <\/p>\n\n
In kindergarten, it\u2019s very clear how much fun it is. How good it feels to touch, soak, smear, splash. Most parents seek out educational settings that encourage sensory play, sandbox fun, and a wide variety of creative activities. That\u2019s how children develop \u2014 by learning about themselves and the world through hands-on exploration. <\/p>\n\n
But at some point \u2014 usually around first grade \u2014 it all ends. It\u2019s considered \u201cbabyish,\u201d a thing of the past. Clay and Play-Doh give way to pencil cases (ha, that rhyme was unintentional), and the race begins. Now we have to be practical, neat, diligent, efficient. No time or space for \u201csilly stuff.\u201d <\/p>\n\n
We fall into routines with new priorities, and in some ways, that\u2019s understandable \u2014 that\u2019s how the school system is built. Also, for many parents, it doesn\u2019t feel natural to make room for messy, hands-on activities at home. It takes time and planning, it\u2019s sticky and dirty, and there comes a point where not everyone wants their living room to feel like a daycare. I\u2019ll admit \u2014 even as an art therapist, I\u2019m not always thrilled about opening a finger-painting session with my little ones (especially not on days when I have therapy clients who are excited to do just that\u2026). <\/p>\n\n
Gradually, in an uncalculated and unconscious way, a quiet longing forms \u2014 the hands miss that thing they used to do during a critical stage of development, and no longer do. We want to feel, smell, hear and see movement \u2014 to feel bubbles pop in our hands. We want to hold something. <\/p>\n\n
While working on this piece, I occasionally asked my patients what they loved so much about slime. The most common answer?
In kids\u2019 routines (and even more so in adults\u2019), there\u2019s so much coldness \u2014 books, notebooks, screens (viewed and held), mechanical pencils, rulers, gadgets, fidgets, uncomfortable generic furniture \u2014 so many hard things. We want the soft again. Today\u2019s world is faster and more competitive. Many experiences are binary \u2014 especially through kids\u2019 and teens\u2019 eyes. If you\u2019re not the best, you\u2019re terrible. If you didn\u2019t reach the top \u2014 you failed. If you weren\u2019t excellent \u2014 you crashed. The middle ground is fading, sometimes even nonexistent. Trial and error is rarely an option anymore. Kids today hardly ever get to fail safely. Gradually, they avoid uncertain situations where success isn\u2019t guaranteed. Parents, too, are terrified their children might struggle or feel like they aren\u2019t succeeding. <\/p>\n\n
Instead of sitting with that lack, kids find \u2014 or invent \u2014 their own \u201cgrown-up squish toy.\u201d They concoct something you can\u2019t fail at, something whose whole point is ambiguity, curiosity, experimentation, and the joy of a DIY \u201chome lab\u201d \u2014 full of trials, errors, recipe tweaks, and infinite creativity.<\/p>\n\n
And if it annoys the parents along the way? Double win! Off they run to the kitchen or laundry room, to the forbidden supply cabinet (and yes, sometimes dangerous \u2014 please be aware) and whip up a stretchy, slick, and suspiciously scented slime. (I meant to write \u201csuspicious,\u201d but I like the typo \u2014 the smell really is important. Sometimes it changes over time and might signal that the slime has gone bad and it\u2019s time to say goodbye.) <\/p>\n\n
We live in a world where everyone is alone in their room, yet virtually connected to thousands. We rarely have true face-to-face encounters anymore. So there’s something deeply comforting in meeting something real \u2014 with our skin, with all our senses. Something that can spark wandering thoughts, old memories, or simply offer a moment of calm in pleasant nothingness. <\/p>\n\n
When slime is made in the therapy room, I feel like part of something magical. There\u2019s a meeting \u2014 between me and the client, and also with the material. In that moment, three exist in the room \u2014 and the dynamic between them is fascinating and deeply therapeutic. <\/p>\n\n
This, by the way, is true for art therapy in general \u2014 its beauty and uniqueness lie in offering the client a meeting with someone (the therapist) and with something (the material).<\/p>\n\n
For me, slime is a \u201csuper material.\u201d It\u2019s created in the therapy room in the way and degree that the therapist allows, from the available materials. It begins as separate parts and becomes a single mass that stimulates all the senses. It can hold everything \u2014 wet materials, dry ones, sticky, hard, pokey, heavy, liquid, colorful \u2014 anything can go into slime. Every component affects it and is meaningful. <\/p>\n\n
Even if a client chooses to make slime every session for a while \u2014 each one will always be unique. It\u2019s nearly impossible to recreate the exact same slime. Slime itself changes over time \u2014 its smell, texture, and color evolve. Every encounter with it is one-of-a-kind. <\/p>\n\n
I\u2019ve made a personal rule: to avoid clear-cut conclusions, advice, or bullet-pointed tips whenever I can. Those are abundant (and overly inflated) on social media and in the world at large. Instead, I\u2019ll end with two invitations:
And one more: if you\u2019d like to share those memories in the comments \u2014 you\u2019re warmly invited. \ud83d\udcab<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
In recent years, a phenomenon has been spreading that has become something of a hobby for children and teens \u2014 making slime. Many children love making slime, exploring its ingredients, and perfecting it. Those who don\u2019t enjoy crafting it themselves, enjoy buying it (in stores or from friends!) and endlessly fidgeting with it. I paused […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":6390,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[133,132,131,134,135],"class_list":["post-6389","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-1","tag-adolescence","tag-art-therapy-behind-the-scenes","tag-arts-and-crafs-at-home","tag-memories","tag-useful-information"],"yoast_head":"