Let’s be honest: finding yourself in your hands a sheet of bubble wrap and resisting the temptation to burst a few bubbles is a truly difficult task. And, once started, it is impossible to stop: one bubble leads to another until the sheet is completely flattened. A premise must be made: no scientific study still investigated why bursting bubble wrap is like this rewarding for our brain, but we can formulate some hypotheses taking into consideration i fidget toyslike pop it and fidget spinners. Just as it was recognized for these toys, in fact, even the repetitive movements that we carry out to pop the bubble wrap could contribute to calm and relax the mind, dissolving the motor blocks that are activated when we are under stress and helping us find the concentration in the present momentuntil reaching a major state calm.
Bursting bubble wrap would help you relax and “unlock” your body
When we hear from each other threatened or stressedone of our body’s first responses is to stop for a while. In practice, it is as if our mind chooses to inhibit body movements For concentrate all his energies to think of a solution. In these situations, make small movementsespecially in anxious or stress-sensitive individuals, could represent a way to mitigate this “body block” imposed by the mind. This is why, according to this hypothesis, some people under stress tend to bite their nails, move their legs up and down uncontrollably or drum their fingers. Likewise, crush the bubbles in the bubble wrap could have a similar effect: melt the muscle tension and accompany us in one state of calmone “pop” after another.
Bubble wrap and fidget toys could reduce anxiety
Well, science has studied (in part) this too. In the’single study conducted so far which has evaluated, in a measurable way and with a scientific method, the sensations reported after having crushed a sheet of bubble wrapa group of 30 students said they felt more active, less tired and calmer compared to those who, in the same experiment, had not crushed bubble wrap.
The reason? Well, in absence of brain imaging studieswhich would allow us to observe what happens in the brain, it is impossible to know precisely why we like it so much pop the bubble wrap balls. However, we can try to make some hypotheses by comparing bubble wrap to something that resembles it: i fidget toys. These are toys, such as pop-its and fidget spinners, created for be manipulated between the fingers, and whose effects have been widely studied by scientists.
All of these games, just like bubble wrap, share one thing in common: they require gods rhythmic and repetitive movements with our fingers. Simple, ritual gestures that have the power to succeed capture our attention. A diversion that would allow the brain to stop navigate among the thousand worries of the past and those of the future, break down negative thoughts And tune into the present timereleasing anxiety and stress. An effect similar to that recognized for some “ancient” gestureslike sliding the beads of a rosary between your fingers or rotating “Chinese spheres” in the palm of your hand, created during the Ming dynasty in China between 1368 and 1644 and used for centuries to calm the mind and help enter a state of meditation.
