In defense of rot

"Bed rotting," self-care, and mental health

Author

Amber Rhodes
January 22nd, 2025

Do you bed rot, y/n?

In case you’re not up with the lingo, here’s what bed rotting means 👇

It’s that thing where you waste the day doing low-lift activities like reading, scrolling, playing video games, or watching season 2 of Squid Game (have you watched yet?!).

Rotting = checking out mentally and physically.

Back in my day, I think we would have called this being a couch potato for a day. But rotting seems to take it one step further – it’s an intentional act to completely shut down.

And this practice gained enough popularity with Gen Z and Millennials to gain a spot in Dictionary.com’s updated definitions for 2024. 

What’s behind the bed rot trend?

In short: PEOPLE. ARE. TIRED.

Sorry…not just tired…

Overstimulated.

Overextended. 

Overexposed. 

You know, burnt out.

Right now, we have access to more data than ever before – and it’s near-constant. If it’s not social media, it’s email. If it’s not email, it’s Slack or texts or Ring camera notifications or our smart watches telling us we haven’t moved around enough.

It’s mentally exhausting, and the act of bed rotting is used as an escape. 

So…is it bed rotting a bad thing?

Yes and no. 

At it’s core, bed rotting is a reaction to being overstimulated. It’s the desire to regain control of waves wildly all of this stuff we deal with every day. 

In a way, it’s just another form of self-care – like mental health days. 

(Also, we can’t leave out the discourse around work habits, capitalism, and the myth of laziness. But THAT’S a convo for a different post.) 

Some more important questions than “is bed rotting bad?” might be: 

  • What’s the trigger for my bed rotting times? 

  • Are these periods negatively affecting my mental health?

  • Am I using this in place of healthier alternatives?

So yes, rot away my friend! But please be careful that your self-care bed rot doesn’t turn into a self-destructive behavior.

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