In 2008, researchers Seong-Hyun Park and Richard Mattson found that when hospital patients were greeted with brightly-colored flowers or potted plants, the patients were less anxious, had lower systolic blood pressure and pulse rates, and needed less postoperative pain medication than patients who spent their time in a room without plants. While your dorm room isn’t a hospital room, flowers still have the power to make your day (and your roommates’ day) a bit better. If that’s not a good enough reason to fill your tiny New York apartment with freshly-cut flowers this semester, here are a few more reasons to consider switching out that dusty-looking plastic cactus on your bookshelf for an actual plant.
Bouquets have been proven to help people reach their goals.
“Flowers help people measure time and track goals whether they be fitness goals or career goals because different flowers are in season at different times and act as a positive symbol of the passage of time,” design and environmental psychologist, Dak Kopec, PhD, told ElleDecor.com. I know what you’re thinking – “But what about my houseplants? Those have to count, right?” While we applaud you for truly adulting and buying a house plant, opting for a bouquet may be more beneficial.
Flowers are associated with happiness.
“Green spaces will always make you feel less stress in the environment,” Kopec said. “But bouquets of flowers are associated with happy events, happy thoughts, and happy feelings. Bouquets and cut flowers have a stronger meaning attached to them and are going to promote stronger emotions.”
Roses have anti-anxiety benefits (this fact alone is to sway my opinion.)
In 2014, a bunch of researchers at the Mizuho Information & Research Institute, Inc., in Tokyo exposed one group of people to 30 unscented pink roses arranged in a glass vase for a total of four minutes (it sounds weird, I know, but keep reading.) The other group was not exposed to flowers, at all. Once the four minutes were up, the researchers asked each participant to fill out a questionnaire, only to find that the subjects who were exposed to the roses felt more “comfortable,” “relaxed,” and “natural,” than they did before the experiment.
The takeaway? Researchers have way too much time on their hand and roses are a great way to power-up before finals come crashing down on us.
Willing to try some rose therapy? Roses Only offers same-day delivery in NYC.
James Stevens founded Roses Only – a luxury flower delivery service – in the 90s. From friendship bouquets to romantic gift boxes, you can find just about anything on the Roses Only website. So, get online and order yourself some roses because (1.) you deserve it and (2.) anything that lowers stress, is definitely worth a try.