Taking a bath is considered one of the more indulgent ways to get clean. We tend to make an occasion of taking a bath, prepping a bath playlist or even planning to meditate whilst we soak.
But the best time for a bath can be a contentious subject – morning bathers and evening bathers will each argue why one is better than the other. We decided to settle the matter once and for all, and have some snippets of advice from some experts for how to prevent burnout.
Most People Are Evening Bathers
We conducted a survey on our Instagram and found that out of the 352 respondents, 95% of people prefer to have their bath in the evening rather than the morning.
Other findings:
- 70% of 252 respondents find a bath more relaxing than a shower.
- 61% of 284 respondents use their phone in the bath.
- 43% of 274 respondents bathe for only 30 minutes or less.
Of this data, the most surprising result was that the majority of people can't go without their phones in the bath. Qualified and accredited counsellor and psychotherapist, Alexandra Jane suggests that,
"Being on your phone (in terms of messaging and using social media) is still stimulating so it’s probably not the best idea if you really want to switch off. I always listen to music in the bath because that’s what helps me to unwind, and I’m not staring at a screen, but it’s different for everybody."
"I get people bathing for less than 30 minutes; often we don’t have the time to stay in for much longer because we have things to do. But it’s really important to view self-care (bathing, showering, doing nice things for ourselves) as just as “productive” as doing housework or other daily activities. Stay in the tub for as long as you want."
Of the 694 weekly searches for ‘bath meditation’, 507 are made in the PM hours compared to only 187 AM searches. The 1100 weekly searches for ‘bath songs’ also happen mostly in the evening with 754 PM searches compared to 346 in the morning hours, illustrating that bathers are prepping for evening baths more often than they are for a morning soak.
Evening Baths Are Good For Mental Health & Preventing Burnout
Alexandra continues,
“I think it’s really important that people wind down after work. Especially in this culture of working from home, because we are kept in the same environment it can be really difficult to draw the line between ‘work’ and ‘home’. Doing something along the lines of having a bath or meditating help us create a clearer boundary and allow us to switch off. I’ve also seen a rise in “revenge bedtime procrastination”, which is where too much of our day is dedicated to work or study, and we stay up much later in order to take back some control or time. It’s really important that employees and employers alike foster work/life boundaries.”
“People who are neurodivergent are more prone to ‘burnout’, but this is because a lot of time is spent masking their autism or ADHD. There is no doubt that workaholics will suffer from burnout at some point, so it’s really important that people with high pressure or demanding jobs engage in their chosen form of self-care too, like a bath, meditation or simply switching off your laptop.”
Andrew, a Mental Health First Aider and University Lecturer suggests:
“Burnout is when our mental emotional capacity has nothing left to give. Recovering from burnout is in some ways far more difficult than from physical exhaustion as we can’t just turn our brains off, making a day relaxing on the sofa surprisingly unhelpful. Instead meditative or physically challenging activities are necessary to push the reset button.”
We continued to ask Andrew if they thought having a bath was a successful way to de-stress at night. He explained,
“Provided they run their own bath… it has to become a bit of a ritual. Weirdly, one of the worst things for someone with burnout is not to have that focus of doing something completely different. Otherwise they will get into the bath and stew rather than meditate.”
Polly Shearer, bathroom expert at Drench explains,
“It's important to make time for self care, and baths are a great way to unwind after a busy day. Sales for our bath racks throughout 2021 have increased by 76% compared to 2020, and the peak of search volume for bath racks was in January 2021, suggesting that the height of Winter is the most popular time for people to carry out self care rituals.”
18:16 PM Is Bathtime For Zen-Seekers
Since baths are a great space for rest and recovery, it makes sense that bathers are searching for bath meditation over 700 times per week. The most popular time for searching ‘bath meditation’ is 18:16PM suggesting that zen-seekers are using baths as a way to wind down after a stressful day.
Prep Your Bathtime Playlists at 18:48PM
Looking for new songs to add to your bathtime playlist? The most popular time to search for ‘bath songs’ is 18:48PM, suggesting that those looking to wind down with a relaxing bath are prepping for an evening soak with the perfect soundtrack.
Brits Bathe Most At 6PM and 10PM
The most popular hours for bath songs and bath meditation are 6PM and 10PM respectively.
On average, 97 searches per week for bath meditation are made at 10PM showing that meditators are using a bath to wind down for a restful sleep.
Searches for bath songs average at 108 per week at 6PM, showing that winding down with a good playlist in the bath is the preferred method of post-work relaxation.
