5 Houseplant Benefits For Your Mental Health
We all at some point or another, have had a struggle here and there with our mental health.
And that’s ok. It’s human nature, and you aren’t expected to be perfect 24/7.
For some like myself, I struggle with my mental health pretty much daily. Some days are good, and some are really hard. The good and hard days have no rhyme or reason, they just happen.
There are some days I can’t seem to keep focused; I feel unworthy and unappreciated – and that’s just on some not-great-days. Bad days come far and few in-between, but they are far worse. Bad days make it hard to do normal everyday things, like eat.
My houseplants seem to keep me pretty even keeled. I have found that my houseplants, weirdly keep me motivated, calm and excited at times. There are many reasons why plants are good for your mental health.
With May being mental health awareness month, I decided to talk about some houseplant benefits to help with your mental health.
Lower Your Stress Levels
The Journal of Physiological Anthropology found that “Interaction with indoor plants may reduce psychological and physiological stress by suppressing autonomic nervous system activity in young adults.”
In this study, participants either repotted a plant or completed a simple computer task.
Participants that were put under tasks that involved plants triggered a less stress response than the others who were on computers.
Connecting to nature is a natural de-stressor. Plants let you put down the technology for a little while and focus on something more natural and organic.
When you tend to your plants, you often forget those unread emails or a project that is due in a few days. Spending time with your plants can give you a break from it all and leave you reset for your next task.
Ease Your Anxiety
Stress and anxiety can often go hand in hand. I for one, experience anxiety more than stress in any given day.
Gardening or tending to plants can be mentally healing. Houseplants help you by removing you from the crazy world for a little while.
Houseplants are silent and still. Being in the quiet of a garden can be very therapeutic. There is nothing more peaceful and calmer than being surrounded by plants. The connection to nature is good to lower your blood pressure, which will help reduce anxiety along with it.
Making Your Job Easier
Some offices can be stale, sterile, and un-motivating.
Plants in an office or in your workspace can help retain your focus and productivity. Plants can also offer a more positive and happier workspace as well.
Knowing plants can help reduce stress and anxiety levels, people who have plants in their work areas have been known to stay motivated and often work for longer periods of time without a break.
People want to spend more time in an environment with more natural elements. A study done in the United Kingdom found that workspaces with plants increased productivity by 15%.
Having plants in the office not only makes it a nicer place to work, it’s also more inviting and inciting for job applicants.
Getting Those Creative Juices Flowing
Displaying plants in your home to work with your décor is a creative task. Even just moving your plants around to refresh your space can help you reset and get you out of the same routine you’ve been stuck in.
How about matching a planter to a plant? Or painting a customized pot? A lot of people reach for terracotta pots because they have been known to be great to paint on. Getting creative with your plants can be such a fun thing to do for your mental health.
Often times your mental health can hold you back from being creative, like depression. Plants can make It easy for you to spark that creativity back in you.
Psychologist Professor Sir Cary Cooper, has revealed that “employees who work in environments with natural elements report 15% more creative overall.”
Self-Care = Plant Care & Plant Care = Self-Care
You love your houseplants, right? You wouldn’t be reading this if you didn’t.
Plants need to stay watered and fed, just like you or I do. If we don’t get the things we need, we die. So, make sure you take care of yourself just as well as you take care of your plants, or maybe even better.
They will also let you know when they’re not in an ideal environment, and that’s something you should be able to recognize in yourself, as well. When you are not in a good place, get yourself out and try another place, physically or emotionally.
Houseplants are also great at showing growth, and will grow alongside you, silently rooting you on.
“wow, so many plant puns”.
Plants don’t want you to fail, because – well if you fail, they fail.
Find The Beauty In Yourself, As You See In Your Plants.
There are many houseplant benefits to help with your mental health. Houseplants became such a hot topic in 2020, while we all were in lockdown. I believe that this wasn’t just because people wanted to start a new hobby but because it was such an uneasy time and houseplants were there to help.
Houseplants are the best medicine in my opinion, even just adding one easy plant to your home can make a huge impact.
If you found these 5 Houseplant Benefits For Your Mental Health tips helpful, you may also want to check out my Why Houseplants Are Good For Your Mental Health blog.
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