When will National Yawning Day be celebrated? November 10th of each calendar year.
What is National Yawning Day? Yawning: A Surprising Ally in Workplace Well-Being
Let’s begin with a surprising fact – yawning is more than just a sign of tiredness; it’s a natural mechanism that our bodies use to reset and refresh the brain. Yawning increases blood flow, oxygenates the brain, and helps clear out mental fog. Incorporating the power of yawning into your workplace culture can be a game-changer. But before we dive into the yawn statistics, let’s see how it complements holistic practices.
The Holistic Power of Yawning and Energy Techniques
- Yawn & Release Stress: Yawning has been linked to stress reduction. When we yawn, we activate the vagus nerve, which triggers the body’s relaxation response. Combining yawning with energy techniques like TARC EFT and Reiki can enhance stress relief and emotional balance.
- Boosting Energy: Ever notice how you yawn when you’re tired? Yawning increases alertness and can help employees stay energized during the workday. It’s like a mini recharge for the brain.
- Enhanced Focus: Yawning is associated with increased focus and mental clarity. Incorporating mindfulness practices like Mindfulness Based Inner Repatterning and meditation alongside yawning can amplify these cognitive benefits.
The Science Behind Yawning
Now, let’s back up these claims with some fascinating yawn-related statistics and facts:
- Yawning is Contagious: According to a study published in the journal “Cognition,” yawning is contagious. When one person yawns, it triggers a chain reaction in others. This can be a fun and natural way to promote relaxation and connectedness among your staff.
- Yawning and Empathy: Research in “Frontiers in Human Neuroscience” suggests that contagious yawning is linked to empathy. A workplace where employees yawn together might just be a more empathetic and supportive environment.
- The 6-Second Rule: On average, a yawn lasts about 6 seconds. In those brief moments, your brain gets a boost of oxygen, and you reset your mental state. Encourage short breaks where employees can engage in a collective yawn to refresh their minds.
Bringing It All Together: The Great Big Yawn Mental Health Fest
Imagine incorporating yawning sessions into “The Great Big Yawn Mental Health Fest.” It could be a unique and effective way to promote workplace well-being. Here’s how:
- Yawn Workshops: Organize yawn workshops where employees learn about the benefits of yawning, engage in group yawns, and combine them with energy techniques taught by Live4Energy Training College.
- Yawn Breaks: Introduce “Yawn Breaks” during the workday, where everyone takes a few moments to yawn together. It can be a fun and unifying practice.
- Yawn as a Stress Buster: Teach employees how to use yawning as a stress management tool. When stress levels rise, a collective yawn session can be the perfect remedy.
- Yawn and Mindfulness: Encourage employees to incorporate yawning into their mindfulness routines. A mindful yawn can be a powerful reset button for the mind more info below
How should National Yawning Day be celebrated or observed? This day should be celebrated when we see others yawning with a smile of encouragement or a laugh together.
Videos, Images, and Yawning Workshops can be celebrated around the workplace, school, college, and more in the knowledge that we are sharing together a journey to creativity.
- Let us share what we see behind our eyes when we yawn and paint it, describe it, write it.
- Let us share what we hear when we yawn and make it tangible and acceptable.
- Let us share what we experience with our jaw, mouth, throat when we start to yawn longer and longer.
- Let us share how it makes us feel.
- Let us share when we yawn.
- Let us share how long we yawn for.
- Let us collect knowledge and research about the yawn and see where it takes us.
- Let us have sponsored yawns for mental and physical health.
- Let us make it the new Comic relief day – The Yawning Relief Day!
- Let us make it the bringing in light day.
- Let us make it fun and natural to STOP stifling our yawns and be unashamedly us in all our naked yawns.
Why was National Yawning Day created? Creating this day brings unique attention to the power behind our very natural underestimated Yawn and its benefits. The darkest months of the year approach us in Europe in November, and we head towards the deeper decline in mental health in this month with more suicides, loneliness, anxiety and so much more. If we can encourage everyone to use their most natural instinctive reactions in a more intentional way to help shift their physical state with their mental state through the chemical reaction of the yawn, then the body is naturally helping itself as well as the mind, even if we are stuck at a desk, wheel, or in bed.
We are all in further need of deeper relaxation in our bodies, and this encouragement helps to stimulate that without having to take time to do yoga, meditate, or any other practice although these used along side it allow the benefits to be tenfold in our development.
Let’s bring some FUN to the Great Big Yawn that makes your eyes water and your mouth feel like you’re going to eat the room! BRILLIANT – That’s The Great Big Yawn we’re looking for.
Who created this day? This day was created by Rachel Earing in 2023.