The Mental Health Benefits of Embracing Cozy Living

October 7, 2025

"embracing cozy is more than a trend. It’s a lifeline."

Welcome to a new month everyone! It's October. I can feel the seasonall shift in the atmosphere. October is known for many types of awareness including breast cancer, national bullying prevention, national domestic violence month, LGBTQ+ history month, ADHD awarness month, and world mental health day (October 10). For this week's blog, I have chosen to focus on mental health and the topic of choice is creating cozy spaces for better mental health. Come along with me as I ramble on with my thoughts.

I’ve been learning that healing isn’t always about big changes. Sometimes it’s about small, intentional shifts, soft blankets, warm light, a quiet corner, and letting those become anchors. Embracing cozy living has become one of the gentlest, most powerful tools in my mental health toolkit. I want to share with you how choosing comfort and peace in the everyday has helped me, and why I believe it could help you too.

I never really resisted coziness; however, I always felt that others viewed “resting” as laziness. Which made me feel as if they were judging me as being lazy by doing so. Something as simple as wanting time alone felt guilt-ridden. However, after seasons of burnout, anxiety, and mind racing at night, I realized: I needed some peace. Not from anything fancy, but just from the noise, external and internal. So I started small. A candle, a blanket, a cup of tea (I absolutely love my tea) or a corner of a room that felt like mine.  In doing that, I began to remember what peace felt like.

Each cozy moment became like a breath after holding one too long.

I started to see shifts in life since I started embracing coziness and these shifts included stress relief, sleep improvement, mood stabilization, and increased mindfulness.

My stress levels has eased. When my environment feels safe and calm, warm lighting, familiar textures. I notice my chest loosen and my thoughts grow less urgent.

My sleep has improved slightly. I'm still a work in progress with my sleep habits. However, I'm slowly starting to see some changes. Nights where I read under a soft lamp, after dimming bright overhead lights, I find I fall asleep more easily. My mind is quieter.

My mood is more stable. This is a huge one especially since I have an endocrine disorder that affects my mood. Cravings for perfection fade. I get fewer “on edge” moments. I feel more grounded, more able to show up for myself.

I have increased my mindfulness. Practicing cozy rituals such as wrapping up in a blanket, slowing down my breath, savoring hot tea, pulls me into the moment. I feel more present, less trapped in past regrets or future worries. Practicing mindfulness has become one of my favorite things to do and it brings me so much joy and peace.

Let's speak a little on what research tells me (and Us) about cozy living.

As I embraced this journey, I also read more. I found evidence that cozy living isn’t just “feeling nice”, it has measurable benefits:

Creating a cozy, familiar environment, what some call “cozymaxxing”, helps signal safety to the brain, which reduces cortisol (a stress hormone) and promotes relaxation. Cortisol is also responsible for many other health issues such as weight gain. Reducing cortisol can have very positive benefits (Healthline).

Practices that reduce overstimulation, like turning off bright lights, reducing clutter, embracing soft textures, can support emotional regulation and lower anxiety (Good Housekeeping). 

Hygge (a Danish concept of warmth, comfort, and connection) has been linked with increased happiness, better ability to cope with winter blues, less anxiety, and a greater sense of self-worth (Verywell Mind, COZY Living). 

As mentioned before, quality sleep is deeply tied to mental health. A comfortable bed, calming bedroom environment, and cues for rest help improve sleep, which then helps mood, memory, resilience (COZY Living). 

Here’s how I try to build cozy daily, so that it supports me, not just as a luxury, but as a foundation for mental wellness:

I create a small ritual before bed: dim lights, put on comfy clothes, diffuse a soft scent, and write in my journal. Those of you who have been following my blogs for a while already know that journaling is one of my favorite activities. I usually save it for bedtime; however, I will journal throughout the day if I feel the need.

I clean or tidy a little each day. Having less visual clutter helps calm my mind. I know this may sound strange to some, but cleaning and decluttering is truly relaxing for me mentally. While washing dishes, I often find myself smiling thinking of all the small things that I'm grateful for in my life. It's the same when I'm cleaning my closets or any other spaces. 

I reduce screen time near bedtime. Reducing screen time before makes for a better night's sleep. In return, I will have a better day the next sunrise. I absolutely love the sunshine by the way 😁. When I do watch or scroll, I try to curate things that bring me comfort instead of worry. I'm a firm believer in that we attract the energy that we exert. We have to be mindful and intentional about our thoughts, words, and actions. Therefore, I seek more positive feed on social media and in return I receive positive feed. It makes a huge difference with my screen time and social media experiences. I also love food, so my feed consist of a lot of recipes lol 😂 

Why Cozy Living Matters And Why You’re Worth It

If you’re reading this and you’re someone who’s always pushing forward, always striving, always feeling like maybe you need to prove something, I want you to know that creating a cozy space is not giving up. It’s choosing yourself. It’s telling your nervous system you deserve rest. It’s building resilience by replenishing.

We don’t have to wait for perfect conditions to heal. We can start now with what we have. We can start in a corner of a room, in soft light, and in moments of kind attention to our own breath and heart.

I want to invite you into this practice of choosing cozy. Maybe it’s lighting a candle tonight or pulling out your softest blanket. Maybe you can let warm tea replace a fourth cup of coffee, turn off your phone earlier, or whatever it is that feels like softness.

Let yourself lean in. Let your home, your space, your routines whisper kindness to your nervous system. Keep exploring what makes you feel safe, seen, calm. When you feel that shift, whatever small shift it is, hold onto it. Let it remind you that healing doesn’t always mean big leaps. Often, it’s tiny acts of love toward ourselves, repeated.

Because embracing cozy is more than a trend. It’s a lifeline.

I hope this blog has found you in good spirits and that you have enjoyed reading my thoughts and personal experience with the mental benefits of cozy living. I truly appreciate everyone's support. Please leave a comment and share any of your experience and knowledge about cozy living and how it affects your mental health.. You never know who you may be inspiring. Wishing everyone peace, happiness and favortism. Please check back weekly for my latest blogs. Some will be personal, others will be about spreading awareness and some will be a combination of both. Until next time...

-Daphne Oh

Kay Bea Presents

"Same World, Different Perspective

Sources

1. “Cozymaxxing: Why TikTok is Obsessing With This Snuggly Self-Care Trend,” Healthline — about how cozy, predictable environments reduce cortisol and support relaxation. 

   
   

2. “What Is Hygge?” and “Benefits of the Cozy Wellness Trend Hygge,” Verywell Mind — emotional, physical, and social mental health benefits of living with warmth, comfort, and connection. 

   
   

3. The connection between bedroom comfort / quality sleep and improved mood, emotional stability.