Healthbolt Travel: Why is there a goldfish in my room?
January 29, 2008 by Liz Lewis
Filed under Across the Pond, Animals, Cute Rx, Happy Living Tip, Health, Misc., Stress, Travel and Health
Having trouble sleeping when your traveling. ? Not to worry. Travelodge think they have the answer – watch a goldfish.
Travelodge had a sleep survey study done that found “…63% of the nation [Britain] is sleep deprived due to stress and 58% claimed watching goldfish could be the answer.”
It’s been accepted for years that watching fish has a relaxing and de-stressing affect on people. Think about it – the waiting rooms of dentists and doctors all have fish tanks for the sole purpose of helping their clients relax.
So Travelodge decided to trial ‘goldfish therapy’ at two of their hotels – the Leeds Vicar Lane and the Birmingham Fort Dunlop Travelodge in England. Customers at these two hotels pick out their goldfish at reception when checking in and are instructed to watch the goldfish for a minimum of 15 minutes to de-stress before sleeping. Of course, you could simply watch it until you fell asleep.
And just in case you’re concerned about the welfare and safety of the goldfish, fear not. The managers and staff responsible for the goldfish have been trained through the RSPCA and Travelodge involved a leading animal psychologist to help in developing and maintaining the ‘goldfish therarpy’ program.
