Shower/Post Shower Routine
Phase i: Observe
Showering motivates me to do things during the day. It gives me energy after feeling down or unmotivated. This week I was in a depressive mood, and it was hard for me to do anything at all. I do not have a routine at all besides when I’m showering and after it. I forced myself to shower, and it did make me feel better. Showering is essential for me to feel clean and motivated; I could go a full day without showering and no more than that. I’ve noticed that coming to UT; I’ve changed my shower time from mornings to afternoons.
Products:
Process:
Step 1: I get out of bed(after class ends) and start looking for clothes. I pick out my clothes grabbing shorts that grab my attention or think of what band tee I should use that day. Sometimes I start heading towards the restroom and forget to take my shower caddy that’s hanging on my bed post. My roommate and I duck taped a command hook to the wall to hold our shower caddy(the only reason we got into UT).
Step 2: Sometimes before I shower I need to go to the restroom, so I do that. Then I take off my clothes and turn on the water, hoping it’s warm. Before I go in I choose a playlist/artist that fits my mood or it’s a Tuesday I listen to Zane and Heath Unfiltered Podcast. After choosing, I get in; I stand in the water for a minute getting my hair wet ready to put on shampoo. I leave the shampoo on while I soap myself up. When I’m done with that process, I rinse off.
Step 3: I grab my conditioner and spread it mostly to the tips of my hair and a bit everywhere else. I leave the conditioner on while I use my face cleanser. I scrub the cleanser and massage my face for a few seconds. Then I rinse off everything. Sometimes I stand under the water not wanting to get out into the real world.
Step 4: Eventually I turn off the water, I squeeze the water out of my hair as much as I can. Then I grab my towel and I stand there looking at my phone for a bit; sometimes I’ll change from music/podcast to a commentary video. While the video is playing, I wrap the towel on my head/hair and I put on my underwear and then I put lotion on all over beside my face. I stare at myself in the mirror checking out if I look okay.
Step 5: I take off the towel and hang it up. I go to my desk and sit down. I put on deodorant, then take a pump & half of face moisturizer. I brush my hair and then spread moroccan oil on my hands and put it on my hair. I put a bit more and scrunch up my ends.
Phase ii: Expand/Contract
Ideation:
I like how my routine is and it helps me feel nice so it would suck to change my routine a lot. Coming up with a lot of nudges was hard for me however. I typed out the nudges that would bother me the most if I were to change something from my routine. I typed them out on sticky notes and color code them from what would bother the most to least. I couldn’t think of anything else that can affect my routine. I think what I though of will have a big affect on me than anything else. Green=most Orange=middle Pink=less
Nudges:
I chose to do 3 of the nudges to do instead of just doing one. This nudges would affect my emotions and my appearance.
The first nudge I can’t play music or a podcast throughout the whole process. Playing something in the background such as music or a podcast is very important aspect of showering for me. I always have music or listen to a podcast while doing anything. So, changing that nudge will affect my whole mood. I also time myself by what I am listening to.
Another nudge I would test is changing the temperature to hot. San Jacinto’s showers get really really hot even when you don’t move it to the hot side a lot. I prefer showering with warm water rather than cold or hot. I do tend to change the temperature if it was really cold in the room or vise versa.
Finally, I would take off a product from my routine which would be my face cleanser. It helps me feel even cleaner and smooth in my face. I want to see if it’ll change my mood a lot.
- Don’t play anything (music/podcast)
- Change water temperature to really hot
- Take off face cleanser from my process
Test:
I followed my routine but did not add any background noise throughout the whole process. It was not the greatest experience. It felt lonely and depressing to be in the shower with out listening to music. It felt off, I wasn’t enjoying the shower as much. I felt like I was going through the motion. I need to listen to something.
I like to shower with warm water but when it is winter I like to shower with hot water. The hot water at my dorm is so hot that it burns, so I didn’t last that long with the hot water I had to change it to warm. It was not a good experience. My friend showers with the hot water that she comes out looking like a tomato. Hot water made my skin and hair feel dry.
Finally, taking out the face cleanser from my routine made me feel eww. Even though my face was clean, it still felt bad. I need to clean my face to feel good overall.
Conclusion:
Overall, I don’t think I’ll ever change my routine while showering. The only one I probably do would be showering hot water because it’s about to be cold. I need to listen to music or a podcast while showering and I need to use my face cleanser. I be sad without it.
Phase iii: Transform
Showering is an important part of everyones daily life. Everyone has their own routine/ritual. It did not magically began with the modern world as “history is never so simple, and plenty of ancient cultures had their own sophisticated bathing rituals — whether for hygienic, religious, therapeutic, or even social purposes.”
The notion that bathing and hygiene could serve medical purposes and lead to better health didn’t arrive until the 18th and 19th centuries; in fact, doctors didn’t even wash their hands before surgery until they accepted Ignaz Semmelweis’ findings on germs in the late 1800s. In the 1700s, the idea that water could be used for therapeutic purposes — termed hydrotherapy — gained some popularity, and several books were written on the cold water cure (Bushak).
Every ancient culture has their own bathing rituals. Even now people have bathing rituals may be cultural or personal. The Ancient Egyptians placed high importance on the rituals of washing, bathing, and applying cosmetics, as it was believed that the cleaner and well-oiled the person was, the closer they were to the gods. Cleanliness was often associated with power, spirituality, and even beauty (Bushak). Even now we can create a spirituality with showering when we need to relax and cleanliness does make someone feel better mentally and physically.
Speculation Ideation:
Reading on the reasons why people used to shower/bathed and how was very interesting. It would be fascinating to recreate the some of the bathing rituals the Egyptians did. I have only used a bathtub twice in my life(elementary) and creating an app that worked with your shower or bath would be cool.
Egyptians used a scented paste consisting of ash and clay for soap, and the Ebers Papyrus, a source for medical knowledge, instructed people to mix animal and vegetable oils with alkaline salts for washing and treating skin diseases.
Idea:
My idea is to create an app that is connected to the shower or bath(there’s a built in system in it). In the app you can choose how you are feeling at a particular moment and it would create a combination of salts and essential oils that would help you relax. It would also put the water at a good temperature to go with how you’re feeling. The app will also alert you when to get out, especially if you’re in the shower(conserve water). At the end the app would give you some examples of makeup looks you can do to make you feel pretty(for yourself, not for someone else 😤).
Storyboard:
The app would do the “heavy” work of combining salts and oils so you can just jump in. Showering/bathing has its health benefits and adding salts and oils are a plus. Anyone can use the app, and the last feature is optional if you like doing your makeup or not.
Closing thoughts:
Showering is a very sacred thing for anyone and it is a luxury that many people can’t get which is pretty sad. Showering makes you feel good and clean like you’re ready to start your day. It is a simple thing that can change your mood. Not showering can make you feel nasty and hot. Having a routine to showering is a plus to feel even better. Showering is important for me to feel motivated to do anything throughout the day and if I don’t feel clean I probably won’t go out. My routine makes me feel more confident in myself and taking things out made me feel out of place.
Source:
Bushak, Lecia. “A Brief History Of Bathing: The Importance Of Hygiene, From Ancient Rome’s Sophisticated Showers To The Modern Day.” Medical Daily, 11 Dec. 2015, www.medicaldaily.com/brief-history-bathing-importance-hygiene-ancient-romes-sophisticated-showers-modern-364826.