When Josh Putner was a child, every time his mother-in-law called, he would step over her as she lay in the kitchen.
“My grandmother used to cover her ears,” Patner, 61, recalls. To cope with this, her mother was “lying on her floor and holding her phone away from her head.” Patna's father was also a fan of the floor, and would take a 20-minute nap under his family's piano every night after work.
So perhaps it's no surprise that Mr. Patner enjoys floor time at his home in Brooklyn or at a friend's house. He says this is partly to stretch and relieve his back (he has scoliosis), but also because it feels good. calm down.
“If I know you well enough to sit on the couch, I know you well enough to lie on the floor,” he said.
While this isn't new to Patner, others have recently started noticing the habit. Posts with the hashtag #floortime have garnered millions of views on TikTok.
Lily Bishop, a graduate student in Chicago, videotaped herself lying on her back on a beige carpet, arms outstretched and silently staring at the ceiling. The words “I'm a floor fan through and through” are emblazoned on the clip. “Did you just finish a meeting? Floor. Did you just get back from the gym? Floor. Want to take a nap? Floor.”
Bishop, 27, said by phone.
For her, the feeling is similar to watching ocean waves crashing onto the shore, but without having to go to the beach.
“It doesn't have to be a quiet natural environment,” Bishop says. “All you need is a floor.”
What's so great about being on the floor?
Although there is no body of research extolling the benefits of lying on the ground, psychologists say spending time on the floor is less likely to cause pain and may even help you feel grounded. I am.
Ellen Hendricksen, a clinical psychologist in Boston, says lying on your back can have a calming effect because it opens up your posture and allows you to relax.
“Your body and mood want to be in harmony,” she said. She added that this is why it's hard to feel hopeful or optimistic when you're slumped in your chair with your head down. Or why do your shoulders raise and your jaw clench when you're anxious?
Alan Vogel, professor emeritus of psychology at the University of Utah and author of “Reparative Embodiment and Resilience,” explained that lying on the ground may help you avoid rumination.
“In our Western culture, we don't have a lot of space for restoration,” Dr. Vogel said. “There are no timeouts. There are no days off.”
You might think that a comfortable mattress will help you relax more easily. “But what typically happens, especially in a familiar place like a bed, is that our minds keep working,” Dr. Vogel says. “We think about what happened that day. We think about what we could have done or should have done.”
However, lying on a hard surface like the floor can make you more in tune with your body's sensations and less focused on your thoughts.
To get comfortable, you need to sink into the floor and soften your muscles, Dr. Vogel added. Focusing on letting go helps release tension in your body and mind, allowing you to “just be,” he said.
Kara Lennon, 34, an account executive and indoor cycling instructor in Boston, has been a fan of floor time for about 10 years.
“It's like going outside and sitting in the sun for a few minutes,” she said. It makes her feel better, “and I can get back to whatever I’m doing.”
People have been drawn to the ground for centuries. An example is Savasana, a yoga pose that involves lying on your back and slowly relaxing each part of your body. Zazen and tea ceremonies are often performed on the floor. Korean homes have radiant floor heating systems, making the ground even more attractive for sleeping, studying, and eating.
Is lying on the floor for you?
Not everyone feels at ease on the floor. For example, some people may have physical problems that make lowering themselves to the ground uncomfortable or painful.
If you're open to it and want to give floor time a try, “focus on your breathing and really turn inward,” says Rachel, a psychologist and clinical assistant professor of psychiatry at New York University's Grossman School of Medicine. Goldman says. Do you feel more relaxed, more grounded, or more in control? If so, that's another strategy you can use when you feel the need. ” she said.
“It may seem silly,” Lennon admitted, but for her, even just a few minutes of bed breaks each day can help her be more productive while working from home.
“We're hitting the reset button for a moment,” she says.
