ASMR. You may have heard about it, watch ASMR videos regularly, or stumbled upon it from a YouTube recommendation. I personally love it, love the feelings and the chills I get from watching ASMR videos. As a declared ASMR fan, I must say, the ASMR video community is growing like crazy. Since becoming more popular a few years back, today we should have an ASMR on Google or ASMR on YouTube, that’s how huge it is. So the question that are there any health benefits of ASMR? But first.
In This Article You Will Find:
What Is ASMR?
According to science (well, Wikipedia), ASMR is the abbreviation for Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response or Auto Sensory Meridian Response. So yes, it is a sensory response that happens naturally with most people, when they have certain sensory experiences. That is, touch and hearing mostly.
The experience of being touched and certain sounds are the most ASMR triggering. An ASMR experience is very pleasant, like a mild excitation on the scalp and skin surface, that for some people induce a great state of relaxation. It can be described as tingling sensations in the crown of the head. It’s a tingling sensation, like getting goosebumps, to be more precise.
Yes, ASMR Is VERY Relaxing
While most people can have ASMR experiences, some are rather disturbed by whispering or soft-speaking videos (like my hubby, for instance). Me, I’ve had ASMR experiences since when I was a child. But back then it didn’t have a name, there was no Wikipedia or YouTube. All I knew was that I love being combed or people playing with my hair. I absolutely loved having my hair cut, this is when I have the tingling sensation on the back of my neck.
It was like an electric feel that gave me a very pleasant sensation. I don’t know if it was the attention that I got from the touch, the physical touch itself, or both. But I loved it. And the best part about it, there are many health benefits of ASMR.
Why is ASMR So Popular Today?
Looking for the health benefits of ASMR? Continue reading. A good 15 years later, there is a name for it. It’s called ASMR. I love it, and my husband hates it (the whispering thing creeps him out) but I can see that most of the world loves it too. ASMR is gaining such popularity, that in 2019, “ASMR” was the second most searched tag on YouTube in the US. Right after “Pewdipie” and after the tag “music”. WOW! Americans searched “ASMR” on YouTube 3,230,000 times last year. And the numbers are growing.
But… why?
I personally prefer falling asleep in a relaxing spa or massage ASMR at night, instead of watching a TV series. It’s comforting, it is soothing and it feels like you’re actually doing a meditation. For me, it brings peace, calm, and relaxation. It’s almost as good as getting an actual massage or facial. But there are more health benefits of ASMR than what meets the eye. I did some research, and here is a list of the 9 most important health benefits of ASMR videos.
9 Healing Benefits of ASMR
1. Relieve Stress with ASMR
The first and one of the main health benefits of ASMR is that watching ASMR videos can stress relief and reduce anxiety. According to a recent number of studies, this is due to the fact that ASMR videos lower heart rates and induce a very pleasant feeling of relaxation and stress relief. A study showed that 70% of participants watch ASMR videos “to deal with stress.” This may be one of the reasons most people watch ASMR and don’t even realize it. Instead of giving in food or other excitements to go through a stressful time, choose a relaxing ASMR video. It works!
2. ASMR for Insomnia
Another of the most amazing health benefits of ASMR is that it can help those suffering from insomnia. I couldn’t agree more that watching ASMR videos (especially spa/massage/pamper kinds) helps me fall asleep faster than reading a book, which was my go-to for insomnia. Even better than a warm glass of milk. If you also watch ASMR videos to fall asleep, you’re not the only one. A 2015 study showed that 82% of participants watch ASMR videos to help them sleep and there are even more studies showing this. Looking for a simple remedy for insomnia? Try ASMR. Below is a good read on ASMR’s effects on insomnia.
3. Good for The Heart
ASMR videos are great for overall relaxation and even meditation. Hence, no wonder the heart loves “watching” ASMR videos. And science proves this. A 2018 study showed that watching ASMR videos can decrease heart rate and increase skin conductance. The TV Show “Trust Me I’m a Doctor” (Series 9, Episode 2) rolled an ASMR experiment with a group of volunteers. The results showed lowered heart rates and increased skin arousal. In conclusion, ASMR is very good for the heart.
4. Increase Focus with ASMR
Amongst the most important mental health benefits of ASMR are improved focus, learning, and productivity. So if you’d want to improve one or more of these abilities, perhaps watching ASMR videos is what you need. A recent survey done by the company Panasonic in March of 2020 revealed that 7% of 2000 employed UK adults listen to ASMR content while working. Another benefit of ASMR is that it can increase learning abilities. Actually, 1/5 of the ADD and ADHD participants in a study told that watching ASMR helped them focus and learn better.
5. Soothe Depression
One of the most important health benefits of ASMR is that watching ASMR videos has been proven to reduce depression and anxiety. Feeling not so happy go lucky? A 2015 study on the effects of ASMR revealed that 80% of participants report an effect on mood which is positive on average. Those at high risk for depression reported that ASMR improves their mood. It is clear that watching ASMR videos on a regular basis can help one feel less depressed and anxious. It can also relieve feelings of sadness, loneliness, and other bad moods.
6. Reduce Chronic Pain
Another one of the major health benefits of ASMR videos is that they can help people suffering from chronic pain. A number of studies and experiments have shown that watching ASMR videos has helped people with pain, chronic pain, and even fibromyalgia. According to one of these recent studies, 42% of participants with chronic pain believed that watching ASMR videos had an effect on their symptoms.
7. ASMR for Addictions
A quite peculiar and unexpected mental benefit of watching ASMR videos is coping with addictions. This is a breakthrough discovery actually because recovering from any addiction is one of the hardest things to do in a lifetime. A lot of people relapse and give back into their addiction while others go through a lot of suffering, mentally and physically. Very many testimonials stand as proof that ASMR videos help people recover from addictions such as alcoholism, and opioids such as oxycodone. If this is the case, who knows what other addictions can be cured solely by watching ASMR videos?
A great way to listen to ASMR:
8. Boost Physical Performance
Another major health benefit of ASMR is that watching these types of videos can increase physical performance in athletes. This is again, a major thing. The relaxation-induced state from ASMR watching may be allowing the muscles in the body to fully relax, hence recover and perform better. This can be one explanation. Some even recommend watching a relaxing ASMR video after a strenuous workout to help the body fully relax. This way, one can make the most of their workouts, because a great part of becoming a great physical athlete is the relaxation after working out part.
9. Trauma Release with ASMR
Last but not least, a major benefit of watching ASMR videos is coping with and releasing past trauma. For instance, sexual assault victims rely on ASMR to help them get comfort and the peace they need to overcome the traumatic event. Moreover, ASMR can also help those that have been dealing with narcissistic abuse, and different phobias or maniac episodes. But there are many other health benefits of ASMR and I am confident that they will be highlighted by ongoing and future studies. One thing is for sure, there are no negatives in watching ASMR videos.
Read Also: The 7 Secrets to Healing All Disease
ASMR Channels That I Recommend
Now that you’ve discovered the top health benefits of ASMR, let’s get to a more fun activity. As I said at the beginning of this article, I am a huge fan of ASMR. Hence I follow a lot of ASMR channels on YouTube. I leave you with a few of the best ASMR videos that I recommend. Hope you will enjoy watching them.
Peace and Saraity ASMR
Love Today ASMR
itsblitzzz
Soy ASMR
VIVA ASMR
ALFREDO UNO
Want to Start Your ASMR YouTube Channel?
Here are a couple of things that may help.
If you’ve enjoyed learning about the health benefits of ASMR, please share this article so more people can use this information. Let us know in the comments below whether you like ASMR or not, and in what way has listening/watching ASMR videos helped you?
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