Callie Godfrey doesn’t have to think outside the lines to de-stress.

In fact, she prefers to stay inside the lines.

Godfrey is an advocate of a national trend — adult coloring books.

“I just use them in my spare time to relax and take my mind off things,” she said. “I bought my first one maybe two or three weeks ago.”

Godfrey, who has an 8-month-old child, said the practice of sitting down in silence and focusing on coloring has a way of melting her stress away.

It’s therapeutic, she said.

“When (my daughter) is napping, if I just want it to be quiet and I don’t have to clean or do laundry, I’ll sit down and color,” she said. “It makes you zone out from everything else around you, and just focus on your coloring.”

The designs offered in the coloring books Godfrey uses range from intricate geometric patterns to floral motifs.

Some are even paired with Bible verses.

“One time I colored a really pretty heart made of swirls,” Godfrey said. “For me, it’s just a great way to relax.”

Natchez resident Summer Scirocco, a friend of Godfrey’s, said she discovered a few other benefits of adult coloring, too.

Scirocco has fibromyalgia — a disorder characterized by widespread body pains. She also has psoriatic arthritis, a form of arthritis that can cause joint pains, muscle stiffness, among other problems.

Coloring, Scirocco said, helps take her mind off the pain associated with these chronic illnesses.

“When I’m coloring, I focus everything on that instead of dwelling on how bad I feel,” she said.

Scirocco said she started using adult coloring books approximately a month ago.

“I never realized how much I missed coloring until I started doing it again,” Scirocco said.

Like Godfrey, Scirocco is also a mother.

Scirocco said her 3-year-old daughter is fond of her mother’s new hobby.

“Of course, she loves to color too,” Scirocco said with a laugh.

Mary Emrick, owner of Turning Pages Books & More in Natchez, said the adult coloring book craze is more than evident in the Miss-Lou.

“They have always been around, but not in the popularity they are right now,” Emrick said. “It’s a very recent trend.”

Emrick said she has kept adult coloring books in stock at her store for a little more than six months.

Adult coloring books can also be found at Bookland, located in the Natchez Mall on John R. Junkin Drive and at Walmart.

“It’s just a great way to relax,” Scirocco said. “You’re never too old to color.”