Thursday, April 14, 2011

How Does Tea Make You Feel?


Tea is touted to have many health benefits, and of course it tastes good. But one of the many reasons why I drink it, is because it can calm me, and eradicate the stress of a hectic day. This is an important way that tea is beneficial for not just physical, but mental health.

I've been trying to think of ways to describe the calmness I feel when I drink a good cup of warm tea. I was mulling it over while sitting on the couch the other day, when my 11 year old cat Misha decided to sandwich herself next to me and the armrest. She kneads the tiny space of couch next to me and melts onto my leg, purring. I immediately feel a warm sense of relaxation and peace. It's the exact feeling I get when enjoying a quiet cup of tea!

I require tea in the morning to wake me up, but I value the versatility it has to also relax, and also refocus my mind. If I'm trying to do too many things at once, I'll have a cup of tea to help my brain sort out the heap of information it has taken in. It usually helps.

For all the tea drinkers out there, how does tea make you feel?

9 comments:

  1. Did you see this infographic comparing coffee with tea? Interesting facts!

    http://m.lifehacker.com//5790350/the-coffee-vs-tea-infographic-lays-out-each-drinks-health-benefits-and-risks-side+by+side

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  2. I hadn't seen that! Very interesting, thanks for sharing!

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  3. I definitely like the way that tea makes me feel...it seems to perk me up a bit, making me feel slightly more awake and alert, but its effect is gentle. I also find that tea can be slightly relaxing as well.

    However, different teas definitely make me feel different ways, and I prefer the effects of some teas to others. I've noticed that the teas that make me feel best tend to taste better to me over time. I have come to really enjoy greener oolongs for this reason, especially the se chung oolongs, as well as Taiwanese high-mountain oolong. But it usually varies more from one tea to the next...I like some Assams for example, better than others, and the same is true of Darjeelings, green teas, Pu-erh, etc. And the teas I like more tend to make me feel better.

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  4. By the way, that chart hosted on lifehacker has a lot of misinformation on it...the claims about caffeine are outright wrong. I suspect that a lot of the information on that chart has just been repeated from other unreliable sources.

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  5. I do notice that certain teas have a more positive effect. I recently started drinking pu-erh, and it had an amazing effect of energizing me yet calming my mind.

    Thank you for pointing out the misinformation. It's always important to realize that you can't just take everything you see on the internet at face value.

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  6. I've noticed that tea boosts my happiness and serenity. I like to drink raspberry zinger tea with a packet of stevia sweetener. When I've woken to a rude awakening, I always feel much happier after I drink my tea. :)

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  7. We Brits have been extolling the benefits of a good cuppa for centuries! I completely agree with you, there's something about sitting with a hot cup and feeling the stresses momentarily melt away. (I am a fan of black tea (preferrably Assam) with a dash of milk and half a teaspoon of agave syrup). This morning was not a good morning, but I feel much more relaxed after my morning brew; I might even go and make another.

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  8. I've just googled the effects of drinking tea because I have noticed that after drinking my favourite tea (Earl grey or Darjeeling) that I start to feel happy. It's not just the pick-me-up effect, it really is happiness. Amazing.

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  9. Can't beat a good fookin cuppa!

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