The Clay Therapy Guide
Flat Out Happy
There you are! Hi!
Is that you, on your phone, scrolling through some stuff?
But stop, no, this time you're doing things differently.
You got your hands covered with mud. Is that clay dust on your jeans? And yes, the phone's buzzing like crazy somewhere across the room but this time, it's someone else's problem!
Because you've been rolling slabs for — wait, how long? 3 hours? Your shoulders dropped somewhere around minute 12. That tight feeling in your chest? Gone.
And your brain, usually spinning like a hamster on espresso, is doing this weird thing where it's just... quiet. Not empty quiet. Clear quiet.
Wait, what happened?
Well, this is what flat out happy feels like. It’s hiding there somewhere in this ball of soft, cold clay.
And we're here to tell you that it's been waiting for you to discover the whole time… Let’s go!
What the Clay Therapy Guide is all about:
The science-backed guide to why rolling slabs of clay for 45 minutes lowers your cortisol, activates flow state, and turns your overthinking brain into flat out happy.
-
Cortisol lowers within 45 minutes, flow state moves in, and three hours vanish like magic. The science of why clay hijacks your nervous system. And why that’s a good thing.
-
Rolling slabs is repetitive on purpose. Imperfection is the point. And your hands remember things your overthinking mind forgot.
-
Spoiler: It's not a tray. How to start simple and why the process beats the product every time. Get our three simple steps!
-
Here's where the research lives, plus additional reading.
Part 1.
What's actually happening in your brain and your body
Here's the thing about cortisol (your body's stress hormone), the chemical responsible for that 3 am ceiling-staring anxiety spiral: it doesn't respond well to pep talks or breathing exercises or telling yourself to just calm down already. We've been there.
They all tell you, it’s meditation.
Spoiler: It’s not!
What Actually Happens When You’re Stressed Out
Cortisol is your primary stress hormone, pumped out by your adrenal glands. When you're chronically stressed, your system runs on overdrive:
So, the hypothalamus (brain region) detects stress and informs your pituitary gland. That activates your adrenal glands, and cortisol floods your system.
Your body reacts: blood pressure spikes, heart races, digestion shuts down, immune system goes offline.
This is called the HPA axis (Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal axis). And when it's stuck in the ON position, you feel it everywhere.
Why Handwork Hits Differently
Bilateral stimulation (both hands working together) plus tactile feedback (feeling, shaping clay) work especially well because they:
Synchronize both brain hemispheres
Heavily engage sensory processing
Interrupt rumination loops (you HAVE to be present or your piece collapses)
After 45 minutes of creative work with both your head and hands, your cortisol drops in your bloodstream, parasympathetic activity increases, dopamine and serotonin increase, your prefrontal-cortex activity decreases (meaning you’re overthinking less) and you feel calmer, clearer, and grounded.
Yeah, it's backed up by science...
The Flow State: Not Mystical, But Mechanical
Because when you're measuring thickness, cutting lines, figuring out how to make corners meet without gaps, your brain is busy. Properly busy. Not anxiety-busy or scrolling-busy or worrying-about-that-email-busy.
And suddenly there's just no room left for your overflowing inbox or whether you said the wrong thing at lunch.
You know that thing where time does something weird and you look up and it's dark outside? That's not magic.
That's flow state. And slab building is a creative habit that enables you to get into the flow state.
Multiple systems shift at once:
1. Your Brain Switches Channels
Your prefrontal cortex (the part that worries, overthinks, catastrophizes) quiets down.
Instead, sensory and motor areas light up—you're more present in this moment and the Default Mode Network (your brain's autopilot for rumination and self-criticism) goes offline.
2. Your Nervous System Flips the Switch
Your autonomic nervous system has two modes: sympathetic (fight-or-flight) and parasympathetic (rest-and-digest).
Creative, repetitive handwork activates your parasympathetic nervous system and signals your brain: "No danger here. We're safe."
3. Cortisol Drops
Fewer stress signals from your brain equals less cortisol production.
After about 45 minutes, your blood cortisol levels are measurably lower. Meanwhile, feel-good neurochemicals like dopamine, and serotonin rise.
4. Your Reward System Wakes Up
Creative work activates your mesolimbic reward pathway (for those who really want to know: the ventral tegmental area and nucleus accumbens).
That releases dopamine—you feel good, motivated, kind of in the zone. It's literally the chemical antidote to cortisol.
Part 2.
Smooth Operations - Enter the Flow State
So, we learned that the flow state's the goal!
How do we go about it?
Let your hands guide you. They'll learn the rhythm. Roll, measure, cut. Score, slip, join. The movements become almost automatic, but your brain stays engaged because every piece is slightly different, every detail needs attention.
So you pay attention automatically.
Find something that is the perfect difficulty level (we have those figured out for you!). Not so easy you're bored. Not so hard you're frustrated.
Just right.
In case you wondered: This isn't distraction. It's not avoidance.
It's your brain finally getting to do again what it's actually designed for — solve problems along the way, create things, exist in the physical world.
Rolling slabs to even thickness is repetitive. Back and forth, feeling for resistance, checking the edges, rolling again.
It's almost meditative in how boring it should be. But somehow isn't.
The rhythm of it. That's where the magic hides.
Your hands find the pattern. Your shoulders drop. Your breathing deepens without you noticing.
This is what your body's been trying to tell you: slow down, make something, remember what it feels like to just be for a while.
Have you ever tried meditation? It's a wonderful tool. For some. It does the same thing with your brain and your body.
But it can be really hard. If it’s never been your thing, start slab building!
This Is The Real Therapy
Not the finished piece.
Not the Instagram moment.
It’s the part where you learn to do it right. And you know what else you’ll learn? Right, every piece will be a little different. You think it’s imperfect?
No, you’ll see that imperfect isn't just acceptable, it's inevitable. And beautiful.
You can always start again. Second chances over and over again. Because it’s about the journey. The process.
Studies show that process-oriented creative activities build psychological flexibility.
That's therapist-speak for:
It’s going to increase your ability to adapt when life goes sideways.
Which is, you know, constantly.
And when you’re getting into it, you’ll learn along the way. Try rolling slabs. Uneven? No problem—you can fix it. Your walls collapse a little? You’ll figure it out. Your corners don’t meet? You’ll take care of that too.
Clay won’t let you check out mentally—it demands you actually show up. But it’s also forgiving. You can start over as many times as you need
Part 3.
What you're really making: Something Real in a Fake World
We live in pixels. We work in tabs. We socialize in notifications. There's nothing wrong with it.
But we just can't do it all the time. Sometimes we need something real.
And then you roll a slab of clay and suddenly you're holding something. Something heavy. Something that didn't exist five minutes ago and now does because you made it.
Your eyes can focus on something three-dimensional and your hands are feeling instead of typing. You'll feel grounded. Not metaphorically. Actually, physically.
So what are you waiting for?
You show up. There's clay. There's a table. Build something. Your hands will know what to do. Let time do that weird thing. And experience what flat out happy feels like.
What’s the worst that could happen?
Worst case: You've got a slightly wonky soap dish.
Best case?
You just found a way back to yourself.
Jackpot!
Go get messy. Start now.
Start today: In 3 easy Steps
Step 1: Start Simple.
Start by wedging the clay and just wedge. Repetitively. 20 times. 50 times. It's a superb feeling.
No need to make a masterpiece just yet.
And then, maybe roll out a small slab. Back and forth. Not too much pressure. Just so that it feels right. Perfect.
Get a cookie cutter from the kitchen. And then press it onto the slab. There, you just made your first piece. Put a small hole in it with a disposable straw. And there it is: Your first ceramic ornament!
Step 2: Keep going.
Trays. Planters. Cups. Start with an easy geometric shape. Not too many pieces to put together.
Maybe a cup that's made out of two simple shapes (find our cuddle cup template here). You'll feel the difference. You just need to make something that keeps your hands busy and your mind present.
It's a wonky tray or cup? That's your first flow state, carved in clay.
Be proud! Then you look up and it's been three hours and you're not exhausted, you're engaged. With a clearer mind. And your brain gets that spa-moment that it deserves.
Step 3: Stay Satisfied.
Here's the thing:
It's not entirely about what you're making.
So you made your first tray. Maybe you made something beautifully wonky that holds your keys. Enjoy its presence. It’s the materialization of your calmer presence. The minutes where you were flat out happy and didn't even realize it until after.
Keep yourself engaged. Make mistakes. But wait, there are no mistakes. So keep going. No strings attached.
Part 4.
The Science Behind The Slip
All those claims about cortisol and flow states and brain activation?
They're not just feel-good talk. Here's where the research lives:
Stress Reduction & Cortisol:
Kaimal, G., Ray, K., & Muniz, J. (2016). "Reduction of Cortisol Levels and Participants' Responses Following Art Making." Art Therapy: Journal of the American Art Therapy Association, 33(2), 74-80.
https://doi.org/10.1080/07421656.2016.1166832
Anxiety Reduction & Creative Activities:
Daykin, N., et al. (2020). "The Role of Participatory Music Making in Wellbeing for People in the Later Stages of Life: A Systematic Review." Frontiers in Psychology, 10.
https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.01091
Brain Activation & Art Making:
Kaimal, G., et al. (2017). "Functional near-infrared spectroscopy assessment of reward perception based on visual self-expression: Coloring, doodling, and free drawing." The Arts in Psychotherapy, 55, 85-92.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aip.2017.05.004
Flow State & Creative Work:
Csikszentmihalyi, M. (1990). Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience. Harper & Row.
Additional Reading:
American Art Therapy Association: https://arttherapy.org
National Institute of Mental Health - Creative Arts Therapies: https://www.nimh.nih.gov