20 Habits Everyone Considers "Bad" But Are Actually Surprisingly Good For You
We're all guilty of having a vice or two, but what if they improved your life for the better? I recently asked the BuzzFeed Community to share the bad habits that are surprisingly good for you. Here's what they had to say:
Note: Some responses are from this Reddit thread.
1."Being picky. Learning to say no sometimes is a good habit and shows you know what you want or need."
2."Daydreaming. It can be helpful to unwind and get out of your headspace for a bit. Plus, it keeps you imaginative, and sometimes, people can come up with better ideas when daydreaming!"
3."Swearing. Letting a few choice words fly is a great way to reduce stress and dull pain. So really, you're not cursing—you're just practicing verbal therapy!"
4."Talking to yourself. Although it can be taken as a sign of loneliness, it also helps you concentrate and organize ideas, of course, without overdoing it."
5."I have colleagues who regularly work themselves to exhaustion, damaging their health. If the pay was better and I had better prospects for additional qualifications or promotions, I'd let my perfectionist workaholic self lose. Alas, they can't offer me anything and expect me to move mountains for them."
6."I am a keen napper. I sleep a lot, and I'm sure people might call it avoidance or laziness. The American work ethic and phrases like 'I'll sleep when I'm dead' are not lost on me, but one of my primary forms of self-care is sleep. I need 10 hours a night, or I have to take a nap during the day. I'm not ashamed. I prefer to think of it as listening to my body."
—Jane from Rhode Island
7."Cleaning junkie. It helps and is therapeutic, although it looks obsessive from the outside."
8."Eating chips. I was diagnosed with a severe sodium deficiency when I was 20, which led to me getting a pacemaker in my mid-20s. I have orders from my cardiologist to eat chips daily."
9."I sleep in on weekends. I'm a night owl. No matter what, waking up before 10 feels AWFUL. Not waking up at the same time every day is perfectly fine."
10."Not being friendly to everyone you meet makes sense. Some people just aren't good to begin with."
11."When my kid was recovering from their stroke, video games —particularly rhythm games— helped so much to recoordinate their motor skills! So yes, they definitely can be therapeutic."
12."Shaking or vibrating your leg when you have to sit for a long time. It gets the blood moving, and is better than being completely stationary for hours."
13."Crying helps ease pain, physically and emotionally."
14."Staying up late. Some people have different circadian rhythms, and it makes evolutionary sense that for a population to thrive, you couldn't all be asleep at once."
15."Coffee! Various articles call out coffee for being responsible for so many negative aspects of life, like anxiety, insomnia, high blood pressure, etc. You also see just as many articles saying it helps you live longer and is great for your overall health (in lower quantities, obviously). I believe coffee has helped my ADHD symptoms significantly and two cups a day is perfect for me. In two decades of daily use, I've yet to have a negative side effect from its use. It's not something I plan on giving up anytime soon."
16."Trusting your gut instinct. It saved my life and drastically improved my test scores time and time again."
17."Procrastination makes me so stressed that I can't focus. It's a huge nightmare. In school, I always did my homework RIGHT when I got home. Even on weekends, I did it right when I got home on Friday. My mom is the exact opposite. She thrives under pressure. She waits until the last second, gets a boost of adrenaline, and can work completely focused until it's done. But if you ask her to do it in advance, she'd be distracted and couldn't get it done."
18.And finally, "Learning that there can be an acceptable amount of disarray in the house if people live there. By nature, I'm Monica Gellar from Friends. Before I had children, my house looked like a magazine. Everything was in its place, not a speck of dust. Everything was alphabetized or color-coded. It was glorious and I would still love my home to be that way. However, when I had children, I learned to relax my standards to avoid becoming Mommie Dearest. I only have my children to love and spend time with for a short time. I teach them how to care for things and their space, but perfection is not required. There will be plenty of time for my perfect, tranquil space when they move out. Until then, clean but a little cluttered or disorganized is just fine."
—Grace from Texas
What bad habit has actually proven to be good for you? Share your thoughts in the comments!
Note: Some responses have been edited for length and/or clarity.
