“I THOUGHT, WHOA,
I FEEL REALLY GOOD
WHEN I’M DOING THIS.
I FEEL REALLY CHILL.”Supersize Me!
“You like mayonnaise? Prove it.” —Costco
@seethenareReader’s Digest The Genius Section
116 april 2020 | rd.comneuropsychologist at Toronto’s Bay-
crest Health Sciences, a global leader
in brain health and aging research.
She says that any type of puzzle is good
for the brain and points to the stress-
relieving benefits of jigsaws in particu-
lar. “If you’re doing a puzzle, you are,
by definition, disconnected and en-
gaged in a task that’s immersive, away
from the interruptions and stresses of
day-to-day life,” she says. “And that, of
course, is good for your brain.”
Vandermorris believes that doing
puzzles with others boasts even more
health benefits than doing them on
your own, adding that it provides a rare
opportunity for intergenerational en-
gagement. “Get the teenagers off their
smartphones and working on a puzzle
with Grandma, and suddenly you’ve
got a really nice family interaction that
seems to be harder and harder to come
by these days.”
Interaction was certainly hard to
come by for Jack Brait. The 23-year-
old from Marshfield, Massachusetts,
has autism and first took to puzzles as
a kid because they “gave him a break
from the demands of socializing,” says
his mom, Michele Brait, who soon re-
alized her son had a remarkable abil-
ity. “He could complete a 1,000-piece
puzzle in one sitting,” she recalls.
As Jack grew, so did his puzzling
talent—and its benefits. In 2014, while
still in high school, he completed a
32,256-piece puzzle (then the largest
in the world) and was inducted into
the Ravensburger Largest Puzzle Hall
of Fame. Three years later, he tackled
another behemoth: 40,320 pieces. Last
year, he finished a 52,110-piecer.
Jack completed these puzzles by
himself, but what used to be an escape
from socializing now facilitates it. His
oversize works attract attention, and he
is more than willing to share the spot-
light. “When I completed my first giant
puzzle, I invited friends and family,” he
says. “I enjoy doing them around other
people.” But the best is when one of his
puzzles is put on public display, as Jack
likes to donate his handiwork. That,
he says, makes him feel “unbelievable,
proud, and happy.” RDWith Emily Goodman