Singing in the shower

BOOST: ALTERS STRESS HORMONES, MOOD CHEMISTRY, IMMUNE FUNCTION

- Hein Kaiser

It's the place where you can be anybody you want, whether it's Mariah, Whitney Houston, Beyoncé, Bono or Freddie Mercury.

The shower is the stadium performance where bathroom acoustics make us all sound like superstars.

And it's not just theatre. According to Lyz Cooper of the British Academy of Sound Therapy, whose research explored how music affects health and wellbeing, regular singing alters stress hormones, mood chemistry and even immune function.

Annemari Viviers of Heavenly Healing said she could not agree more, and that singing in the shower should be part of everyone's start to the day.

Whether your neighbours like it or not, your bathroom concerts may be starting your day better than your breakfast cereal.

It lifts your mood early

Cooper's research noted neuroscience and psychology studies that show singing lowers cortisol, the hormone linked to stress, while stimulating dopamine, endorphins and oxytocin, the chemicals associated with pleasure, calm and emotional connection.

"These neurochemical changes are why people often feel emotionally lighter after singing," Cooper noted in her research. "It creates a rapid uplift in mood and reduces stress.

"The shower provides privacy," said Viviers. "Without an audience, people sing more freely and that uninhibited singing is where much of the emotional benefit is generated."

It's low-impact breathwork