9 Crafts and Hobbies That Are Good for People Living With Parkinson’s Disease

Living with Parkinson’s disease (PD) comes with unique challenges, and it’s normal to feel discouraged at times. Finding activities that you enjoy can help, and some crafts and hobbies may even improve your symptoms. 

Below, we share activities that support physical and mental health for people with PD according to research. But you don’t have to take the scientists’ word for it. We highlight PD experts and community voices who share their unique perspectives on different activities that have helped them.

1. Painting or art therapy

Art therapy may benefit people with PD in several ways. It can help improve:

• Visuospatial skills: Visuospatial skills refers to someone’s depth perception and ability to mentally measure distance and space. Making art stimulates pathways in the brain that play an important role in these skills for people with PD. 

• Fine motor skills: Holding a pencil, crayon, or paintbrush can strengthen the muscles that help you make small movements with your arms and hands.

• Tremor: Fatigue and stress can lead to worsening tremor in PD. Art therapy encourages relaxation, and it therefore may help reduce these symptoms.

• Expression: PD can affect someone’s speech and facial expressions. Art can help express emotions in a visual way when someone has trouble expressing themselves in other ways. 

• Sense of togetherness: Feeling alone or isolated is a common experience for people with PD. Participating in art therapy with others can lead to connectedness and a sense of community.

Research findings support the potential benefits of art therapy. After 10 weeks of group art therapy, people with mild to moderate PD experienced physical and emotional benefits. More specifically, they saw improvement in motor control, cognition, motivation, emotion, creativity, and visual functioning. And their overall functioning improved, too.

“Painting helps people reconnect with focus and expression,” said Moti Gombard, chief executive officer of Raya’s Paradise. “We’ve had residents [with PD] who never painted before pick up a brush and spend quiet afternoons blending color. It’s not about perfection, it’s about creating something that feels personal. The movement is gentle, but the emotional reward is strong.”

You may choose to paint with a brush or even your fingers. Or you may prefer to sketch or color with pencils or crayons. There’s no right or wrong way to be an artist. And if the final result turns out different than you expected, that’s OK. As Gombard mentioned, the journey of creating the art turns out to be as meaningful as what you make. Art is often abstract, so don’t be afraid to let your creative juices flow.

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2. Pottery

Pottery is a great choice for people with PD at any skill level. In this form of art therapy, people create ceramic objects by shaping or manipulating clay. You can use your hands to mold the clay, or you can use a pottery wheel.

Research on this topic has found several benefits. Regular clay art therapy can help improve:

• Mood, symptoms of depression, and anxiety

• Self-expression

• Fine motor skills, particularly in the hands

• Walking

• Tremors

• Overall quality of life

“I often recommend working with clay to my patients with Parkinson’s,” said Dr. Firuza Aliyeva, a board-certified psychiatrist. “It’s simple, it doesn’t require fine precision, and it helps keep the hands moving in a way that feels natural — not forced. People find it calming. They stop thinking about their symptoms for a little while, and just focus on what they’re making. That mental break is just as important as the physical benefit.”

3. Scrapbooking or collage

Scrapbooking or collage is another form of art therapy that’s beneficial for PD. Similar to painting and pottery, research shows that it can help improve visuospatial and motor skills. 

Creating a collage or scrapbook is a great way to tell a story through pictures. Sorting through photos or magazines is a fun way to keep your mind engaged and focused. And if you’re looking through photos of friends and loved ones, it’s a nice way to remember special moments. Cutting out the materials, arranging them, and securing them in place are all ways to keep your fine motor skills sharp. 

“I encourage clients to create scrapbook pages that include pictures from holidays, old memories, and images of family and friends,” said Stephanie Jeret, a certified speech language pathologist. Jeret said that this activity is beneficial for several reasons. Scrapbooking can: 

• Improve fine motor skills through tasks like cutting and arranging

• Foster creativity through the design process

• Provide an opportunity to engage in social and verbal communication, which can become more difficult as Parkinson’s progresses 

“It’s a fun and meaningful way to support both physical and cognitive skills,” Jeret said.

You may choose to scrapbook individually or with others. Group scrapbooking or collaging can lead to new friendships. It’s also a chance to increase connection with existing friends and loved ones in your life. And a finished scrapbook serves as a beautiful source of memories that can be passed down to future generations.

4. Music or playing instruments

Listening to music can be therapeutic for anyone. But it has some unique benefits for people with Parkinson’s disease:

• Music activates key parts of the brain, including parts that store memories. 

• It increases levels of dopamine, a chemical that’s decreased in brains affected by PD.

• Studies have also shown that there’s a connection between hearing and balance. And so listening to music can improve balance, lower frequency of falls, and improve gait in people with PD.

John Bianchi, head of editorial services at FINN Partners, was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2020. He plays clarinet, saxophone, and stringed instruments. 

“When I play music, it provides me with the opportunity to maintain my dexterity,” Bianchi said. “And carrying instruments and gear to and from gigs has proven to be an exercise in its own right!”

You don’t have to play an instrument to get the benefits. Simply listening to music you enjoy can help. But it’s never too late to learn a new skill. 

“Rhythmic percussion (particularly drumming) is one of the most underused yet powerful hobbies for individuals with Parkinson’s,” said Dr. Louis E. Costello, a board-certified psychiatrist. “The brain begins to synchronize with pattern, tempo, and muscle, bypassing the usual anxiety about ‘getting it right.’”

5. Playing with animals

Many people love animals — and science shows having a pet has benefits for both your mental and physical health. Spending time with animals may:

• Decrease loneliness

• Reduce stress

• Improve your mood

• Lower blood pressure

Pets in particular provide unconditional love, loyal companionship, and comfort during moments when you need some extra support. For people with Parkinson’s disease, having a pet like a dog can be particularly beneficial. Research suggests that having a dog is associated with fewer medicines and physical symptoms of PD. And they encourage regular walking and exercise, which is also important if you have Parkinson’s disease.

Service dogs can also help people with PD during freezing episodes. They can pull in a way to help get their bodies moving. They can also stiffen their bodies to help people get up if they’ve fallen.

If you’re thinking about adopting a pet, remember to consider the animal’s needs. If daily walking is difficult, you may opt to get a cat instead of a dog. And if owning a pet feels like too much of a responsibility, there are other ways to still get involved with animals. You can volunteer at a local animal shelter, or pet-sit for a friend or loved one.

6. Playing board games

Board games are another hobby that people with PD may enjoy. And sitting down for a game like Scrabble or Boggle may help keep your brain and memory sharp.

If word games aren’t your thing, that’s OK. Any game that you play with another person or in groups can boost feelings of connection and decrease isolation. And even a game like solitaire can help you feel focused and relaxed. If it’s hard for you to hold cards, card holders may come in handy if it’s challenging to grip them with your hands.

Video gaming deserves a special mention, too. Video games have been shown to improve cognition even more than board games. And in people with PD, using the Wii Fit balance board for 8 weeks led to improved balance and walking. It’s easy to lose track of time when you’re gaming — so set a reminder to get up, stretch, and apply those benefits from gaming to real life.

7. Knitting

Knitting requires small motions with your hands, and coordination between your eyes and your fingers. For people with Parkinson’s disease, repeating these movements can: 

• Strengthen muscles and improve fine motor skills

• Lessen tremors

• Improve mood and increase motivation

• Improve concentration, which can promote clarity and brain wellness 

If you find knitting too hard, consider crocheting. Crochet is an easier alternative to knitting since it uses one hook instead of two needles. The patterns are often less complicated and it’s easy to correct mistakes — unlike knitting. 

Hobbies like knitting offer more than just an enjoyable activity, said Dr. Prashanth Kukkle, a specialist in PD. “They serve as powerful therapeutic tools by promoting hand coordination and mindfulness,” Kukkle said. “These types of hobbies bring a sense of purpose, social connection, and joy, which are vital for holistic care in Parkinson’s.”

8. Bird watching

Bird watching can be done almost anywhere, and requires little or no equipment. It also provides several benefits similar to the other hobbies on this list, including:

• Reduced stress

• Lower heart rate

• Lower blood pressure

• Improved mental health

To start, find a good spot — whether that’s in your backyard or on a bench in a nearby park. You may want to get a pair of binoculars to help you see birds more easily. And if you do set up in your yard, you may consider adding a bird feeder to attract birds. 

There are often local bird groups that you can join to learn more about the different species of birds, and what to look and listen for when you’re bird watching.

9. Nordic walking

A large amount of research shows that exercise has unique benefits for people with Parkinson’s disease. It leads to improvements in:

• Balance, flexibility, and movement

• Coordination, strength, and endurance

• Energy levels

• Sleep

• Memory

• Quality of life

And regularly exercising can also help to slow the progression of Parkinson’s disease. 

Exercise looks different for everyone — maybe it’s dancing in the living room for one person, and going on a quick walk around the block for another person.

For some people with PD, using certain equipment may make exercising easier. An example of this is nordic walking. Nordic walking involves using two specially designed long poles — one in each hand — to help you maintain your balance as you walk. The poles are often called trekking poles.

When using trekking poles to Nordic walk, studies show that people with PD have:

• Improved coordination and balance

• Greater mobility

• Faster walking speed

• Longer walking distance

Using the poles draws your attention to balance and how you’re walking, which can help you improve your stride and stability. And they can be used anywhere, whether you are walking down the street or strolling along a nature trail.

Christine Stanley has been living with PD for 7 years. She participated in a research program studying the benefits of Nordic walking for people with PD. “I loved it, and completed a Nordic walking instructors course a month later,” she said. She was the first woman with Parkinson’s disease in England to obtain this qualification. “I strongly believe you have to be your own advocate and remember that you are capable.”

Why trust our experts?

Written by:

Cherilyn Davis, MD

Cherilyn Davis, MD, is a board-certified pediatrician in New York City. She has held local and national roles at the American Medical Women’s Association including board member of the physician division and physician chair of social media.

Edited by:

Katie E. Golden, MD

Katie E. Golden, MD, is a board-certified emergency medicine physician and a medical editor at GoodRx.

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