Key takeaways
- Coffee can definitely relax you. The ritual of making and drinking coffee creates a mini-break from the stress of daily life.
- Creating a coffee ritual where you block out distractions and focus on the sensory profile can turn it into a grounding daily break.
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Finding a calm, restorative environment to drink your coffee can enhance its soothing properties.
Often, we associate coffee with non-stop stimulation. Early mornings? Coffee. Long working hours? More coffee. Most of the time, we see it as a means to an end – an antidote to busy schedules and daily life. But as the way consumers drink coffee changes, can coffee relax you?
As younger demographics in particular become more focused on health-focused lifestyles and wellness practices, coffee has become part of the shift. If you turn coffee drinking into a ritual of relaxation and meditation, it can have calming and even restorative effects. The result is a relaxing coffee experience rather than an overstimulating one.
To learn more about how coffee can relax you, I spoke to SJ Tadayon. He is the co-founder of Zesto Coffee, a London-based business where coffee is meant to be savoured, not rushed. Read on for his insight.
What are the psychological benefits of taking a coffee break?
Taking a coffee break can be amazing for your mental well-being. Don’t treat it as a stopgap for extra energy during the day. Instead, you’ll get the best results if you block out time in the day to enjoy your brew.
This ties into the Swedish concept of “Fika,” where a coffee break is a state of mind and a regimented practice. They treat coffee consumption as a pause where you reflect on the day so far and engage with colleagues, friends, or family. By applying the concept of Fika more widely, your coffee break can easily become a vital part of your wellbeing practices.
After all, manually brewing and drinking coffee is a grounding experience. It forces you to slow down and think about what you’re doing. All other thoughts and concerns will simply melt away. Stepping away from work to grind beans, boil the kettle, and wait for the coffee to brew introduces a clear psychological boundary between your cup and the day’s challenges. In this sense, coffee is often one of life’s few intentional pauses.
“Our lives are busier than ever, and it can be difficult to carve out time for ourselves,” SJ tells me. “Coffee is the ideal antidote to that – it forces you to slow down, think about what you’re doing, and appreciate the here and now.” It’s this interruption, however brief, that provides much-needed cognitive distance from sustained mental effort, encouraging a shift in attention.
Research also shows that these short breaks help to reduce mental fatigue, sustain focus, and reduce stress – without compromising productivity. When coffee is consumed as part of this break, our minds become associated with relief and relaxation rather than urgency.
“For our own mental well-being, it’s so important to find practices and routines that separate the stresses of life from our personal enjoyment,” SJ explains. “Coffee is the perfect way to make that distinction – you’re forced to focus on something incredibly precise. As a result, those worries can fade away.”
Over time, repeated exposure to this pattern can turn coffee into a calming ritual within demanding routines. In that sense, it can easily be a stabilising presence rather than simply a stimulant.
The science behind coffee and relaxation
Coffee is often associated with mental stimulation because caffeine primarily works by blocking adenosine receptors. This blocks feelings of drowsiness and increases the release of neurotransmitters like dopamine and noradrenaline, which play a major role in mood and overall motivation.
Recent research shows that moderate coffee consumption can boost your mood while reducing apathy and fatigue. This mindset creates the conditions for relaxation and mental clarity. As such, a drink so often associated with energy can actually be the key to winding down.
“We all know that coffee is high in caffeine, but most people don’t know what it actually does,” SJ says. “Caffeine blocks the release of adenosine in the brain – basically, a neurotransmitter that makes you feel drowsy. By having a measured amount of caffeine in your system, you can focus for longer and think much more clearly.”
More so, the context in which coffee is consumed helps shape its psychological effects. According to Frontiers in Psychology, spending time in soothing, restorative environments, such as outdoor natural settings, slows the release of physiological stress markers like cortisol. This is a hormone produced by the adrenal glands that triggers the body’s fight or flight response. As such, if you drink coffee in a soothing environment as part of your routine, you’ll feel more relaxed.
Similarly, studies show that coffee shops with plants and nature within their space can enhance the emotional well-being of their visitors. As such, ambience and setting are clearly vital to shaping our mood. Pair these spaces with a coffee routine that encourages you to sit back, sip, and relax, and you can soothe yourself with your cuppa.
Can the sensory profile of coffee relax you?
No matter how stressed you might be feeling, the aroma and flavour of coffee can be a soothing reprieve.
A 2021 study conducted by Scientific Reports found that dental patients who inhaled coffee aromas during treatment had significantly reduced levels of salivary cortisol and alpha-amylase – two key markers of stress response. These findings suggest that the sensory profile of coffee, alongside the ritual around it, can contribute to relaxation.
Temperature further shapes the emotional experience. Another study conducted by Frontiers in Psychology found that warm drinks like coffee evoke more positive emotional responses than cold drinks. This reinforces the age-old association between warm drinks and that soothing feeling.
SJ believes the sensory aspect is essential to the connection between coffee and relaxation. “There’s something really comforting about the hot touch of a coffee cup,” he says. “On a cold morning, it’s like a warm hug that makes it much easier to start the day.”
The more time and focus you dedicate to your coffee ritual, the more you’ll appreciate each coffee’s sensory profile, too. “When you block out time to sit and appreciate your coffee, you’ll naturally end up more relaxed,” he explains. “You can appreciate the nuances of each coffee and the work that has gone into it. In the end, you’ll feel much more prepared to tackle your day.”
At Zesto Coffee, the intrinsic link between coffee and relaxation underpins our entire philosophy. We’re here to change the way you think about coffee – as a companion rather than a tool for energy.
“For us, it’s all about treating coffee with the respect it deserves,” SJ concludes. “Taking that extra five minutes to properly enjoy your coffee, assessing its sensory profile and blocking out other thoughts, is essential for mental clarity.”
Explore our selection of coffees here to find the right choice for you.
FAQ
Can coffee relax you?
Absolutely! For many, the ritual of making coffee is soothing and distracts them from stress. It’s a mini holiday in a cup that takes you away from daily life for five minutes.
Isn’t caffeine supposed to make you anxious?
Not necessarily. In high doses, caffeine can increase alertness and cortisol levels. However, moderate intake, paired with a calm environment and slow consumption, offsets these effects.
Can the smell of coffee relax you as well?
Yes, studies show that the sensory profile of coffee, especially its aroma, can slow the release of cortisol, which contributes to feelings of stress.
