Imagine getting home after a long day, you got in a fight with your friend, failed your quiz, and spilled yogurt all over your clothes. You get home exhausted and stressed out, all you want to do is go to your room and lay in your bed. You close your eyes, ready to take a long nap, and right when you think you’ve forgotten all your worries, your brain starts spiraling. Thinking about the fight with your friend, wondering if they are still mad. Thinking of the quiz you failed and what your parents will think. All you do is worry, and when you try to think of something else your brain won’t stop. Everyone has experienced this feeling some time in their life, the feeling of trying to do something relaxing but all you can think about is the thing that is stressing you out.
Your brain is constantly working. Working to keep your heart pumping, your body moving, and thoughts appearing. Thoughts are a constant occurrence in the human brain. We all have an inner voice reminding us of all the things we want to forget. There are many ways to help calm your stress and silence this inner voice, some being meditation and exercise. Another thing you can do is lay on the floor. Laying on the floor has been proven by multiple studies to significantly help both your physical and mental health.
“When you lie flat on your back, your posture is open and relaxed, which may have a calming effect, said Ellen Hendriksen, a clinical psychologist in Boston.“Your body and mood want to align,” ” In this quote form the New York Times, Ellen Hendriksen explains how lying on the floor opens your posture, naturaling giving your body a calm feeling. When we are stressed our body will match that by feeling tense or having slumped posture. By opening our posture and laying on the ground we help trick our minds into thinking we feel peaceful. “As well as realigning the spine, it stops you feeling overwhelmed, allowing you to focus on yourself and providing vital time out to quieten the mind and process emotions.” The Society of Teachers of the Alexander Technique explains. Lying on the ground is not the most common thing in our culture, but when you think about it, laying on the ground and laying on your bed is not that different.
In this quote from The Telegraph, they explain how laying on the ground helps bring more awareness to how you are feeling in your body. “Lie on the floor and you are far more aware of the body parts that are coming into contact with the hard surface. Tuning into your bodily sensations, you may become aware of those parts that are holding tension.” By taking a break and properly allowing yourself the time to feel calm, helps you become more intune with your body and what it needs. The act of placing your back on a hard surface helps realign your spine and bring more attention to the places that feel pain. When in this position, it helps concentrate the mind on your body giving your worry a much needed rest.
Lying on the floor may not be the most common but is definitely effective. By having physical benefits, such as realigning your spine and stretching your body, as well as having mental health benefits by bringing the attention away from your worry and to a mindful, peaceful place. Lying on the floor is something we can all do in our everyday lives, and even though it may seem a bit strange the studies show how beneficial it really is. If your mind feels stuck on a fight, or stressed by an assignment, try taking a deep breath, find a cozy spot and enjoy some floor time.
