Is showering in the dark the secret to better sleep, better mental health, and maybe even a better life? TikTok would certainly have you believe so. The practice of taking a nightly shower with the lights off has become the wellness trend du jour on the app.
But there just might be very real and valid reasons the practice sounds so relaxing and alluring, because it turns out it actually has some basis in science.
4 science-backed benefits of taking ‘dark showers’ with no lights on:
“Dark showers” or “sensory showers” as they’re sometimes known, have become a huge viral trend on TikTok recently, with many people swearing by their benefits when it comes to relaxation, anxiety management, and perhaps especially, better sleep.
Many devotees of the trend tend to share a common theme among the ways they say dark showers benefit them: It helps clear away the overstimulation that we all take on as we move through our days, whether that’s at work, at home with the kids, at school, or just idly scrolling the drama in our phones.
That not only makes life easier, but helps us sleep better, and sleep impacts every aspect of life in ways most of us underestimate. Here are four underrated benefits of this viral trend, backed by actual science.
1. Dark showers trigger hormonal releases that lower stress and help you sleep
This is really where the rubber meets the road on “dark showers.” Hot showers actually trigger hormonal changes in the body that have a direct impact on stress, anxiety, and the sleep-wake cycle.
The hot water lowers cortisol, the stress hormone that keeps us up at night, among other detriments, but also triggers the secretion of oxytocin, often called “the love hormone,” that makes us feel safe and calm. That’s a powerful combination any time of day, but especially at night, as long as you don’t disrupt it by staring at your phone afterwards!
2. Dark showers help reset your nervous system
In the long-running debate between whether hot or cold showers are best, therapists say hot wins by a long shot if nervous system regulation is the goal. This is because the warm water helps move your brain out of the sympathetic “fight or flight” nervous system, into the parasympathetic “rest and digest” nervous system.
The sensory deprivation of having the lights off enhances this by helping you settle more deeply into your body, aiding the transition. But maybe even more importantly, it helps you slough off the effects of staring at screens all day, which have been clinically proven to spike anxiety, disrupt circadian rhythms, and overstimulate our nervous systems.
3. Dark showers simulate meditation
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The aforementioned nervous system regulation is quite literally the point of meditation: That’s why you’re told to focus on your breathing, for instance, because it takes you out of your brain and into your body, helping your nervous system regulate. Breathing techniques also trigger the vagus nerve, a key component of the parasympathetic nervous system.
As journalist Tanner Garrity writes, “dark showers” can mimic meditation, especially if you’re a person who struggles with the practice. (It IS hard to just sit still and silent sometimes, even for people who’ve been meditating for a decade like me!) If meditation feels like too heavy a lift, dark showers might be just the solution you need.
4. Dark showers provide a ‘shutdown ritual’ for ending the day
Psychologists have long recommended daily rituals to signal the end of the workday, especially those with very stressful jobs. My former therapist once explained to me that after absorbing everyone’s trauma all day, she HAD to go home, immediately shower, put on different clothes, and have a cup of tea as a way of signaling her nervous system that the work day was done and she could begin moving through her normal life.
Dark showers provide the same practice. Many on TikTok have spoken about this, as one stay-at-home mom whose husband works long hours and whose extended family is far away. She shared in a video that having that ritualized way to end the day helps her “be the best mom she can be.”
We are all constantly bombarded with health advice of dubious factuality, not to mention efficacy, but when it comes to “dark showers” and “sensory showers,” it seems like the TikTokers have definitely got it right. Who knew better sleep and a more regulated nervous system were just a light switch and a showerhead away?
John Sundholm is a writer, editor, and video personality with 20 years of experience in media and entertainment. He covers culture, mental health, and human interest topics.
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