Staying in bed all day: not going anywhere, doing nothing—some have called it “bed rotting.”
Rotting away is a very apt way to describe it.
Bed rotting is a good way to make your health rotten. It’s a good way to ruin your sleep.
The name is too cutesy for something so easy to avoid, for something whose consequences are so severe.
You won’t be getting fresh air and exercise, making yourself good meals (important to nutrition and enjoyment of life). You’ll be cooped up between your four walls all day.
More than that, your decision to rot away the day in bed can have real-world consequences for you when it comes to your pets, your children, and your spouse or significant others. They all suffer.
Bed rotting detracts from a lot of life.
It’s a trap
It’s an easy trap to fall into under certain circumstances. When the weather isn’t favorable for going outside, for example, when it’s too cold or hot, too rainy, or too much of something, one might feel the most comfortable keeping between the sheets and letting the day pass them by.
Or when your emotions or the “what-ifs” get ahold of you.
Bed rotting is a temptation. It’s difficult to avoid if you don’t prepare for it.
It’s hard for scientists to study. It’s a chicken-or-the-egg problem. Depression can be temporary or chronic. Avoid it by setting up things in your life and general environment to encourage you to move.
Plan to avoid bed rotting
If you’re prone to this behavior on your days off, plan to avoid it.
If you set a goal of getting so many steps during the day.
If you have a task you’ve got to do that takes you outside.
If you have a regular game you play where you’ve got to move a certain amount. Pokemon Go
If there’s a certain dish you want to prepare, you’ve got to go to the store to get the ingredients.
If you make plans with a friend, all the better if you’re going to play a sport or a game with them, or go on a walk together.
A big key is to cultivate active interests outside of working all the time.
Bed rotting is easy to avoid, but the consequences of worsened sleep and health are severe, and the temptation at the moment can be extreme. Don’t think so? For many, all it takes is some kind of assault on their stability: relationship struggles, loss of job, or getting sick.
Make a vow to yourself: “No matter what, I’m going to work a little toward reaching for my goals every day.”
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