Tea has left flicked up pinkie finger culture and cucumber sandwiches behind. Well, not entirely, because ritual is important.
But, as a winding-down tool to life’s Duracell bunny pace, it’s become a trend that’s likely not going to go away, but grow.
And, unlike other self-care trends, tea has not asked for much from its lovers. There’s no major skin routine or torturous gym regime at the end of the influencer TikTok how-to video. Instead of a laborious ‘get ready with me’ post, sipping tea with me is just different.
Making a cup needs only a kettle, a vessel, and a teabag and some milk, if you please. Taking tea gives a few uninterrupted minutes of zen.
Where coffee’s the brew of deadlines and waking up sleepy-heads, tea’s its opposite.
Part of tea’s growing popularity lies in the fact that it creates a socially acceptable reason to stop for a few minutes in a culture where doing absolutely nothing either looks lazy or is simply impossible otherwise.
Research on tea rituals, how you make your brew, found that it often becomes as important as the drink because repetition and familiarity create a sense of calm and predictability during mentally noisy days.
Taking tea slows it down
Medical doctor and psychologist Dr Jonathan Redelinghuys said people often underestimate the psychological value of simply slowing down long enough to disconnect from constant stimulation.
Tea, he said, can naturally create a pause in the day because the ritual of making it cannot really be rushed without defeating the point.
Making tea follows a rhythm that’s almost instinctive. Boiling the kettle, choosing a blend, waiting for it to steep and sitting down long enough to actually drink it. It takes time.
“Many people are increasingly drawn toward smaller and more manageable wellness habits instead of punishing self-care routines that feel impossible to sustain,” he said. “Taking tea delivers that.”
Dr Redelinghuys said tea also occupies a very different psychological and physiological space to coffee, particularly because many teas are not associated with the same stimulant effect.
“Some teas, like rooibos tea, are naturally caffeine-free,” he said. “They don’t necessarily have those negative connotations that you get from caffeine, that it will keep you awake, or that you’re going to get the post-coffee jitters.”
Coffee is the drink of deadlines
He explained that coffee and tea have increasingly become associated with completely different emotional experiences.
“You would use coffee to get up and go and tea to sit down and relax,” he said.
Coffee has become tied to alarms, deadlines, overflowing inboxes and trying to force exhausted bodies into functionality.
Tea, meanwhile, has become associated with stepping away from overstimulation for a few minutes.
Unlike coffee, which largely delivers a rapid caffeine hit, tea often creates a gentler, more gradual experience, depending on the blend and its chemical composition, said Dr Redelinghuys.
“This softer and less accelerated effect has helped position tea as part of emotional decompression rather than performance and productivity culture.”
Decompress emotions
Warm mugs, familiar smells and repeated routines also often become attached to memory, comfort and intimacy, whether it reminds people of grandparents, family kitchens or late-night conversations shared over steaming cups.
Tea has managed to become both practical and somewhat sensual at the same time.
It’s also an easy vice. Dr Redelinghuys said that many people are looking for ways to relax that do not involve extreme lifestyle changes or complicated wellness routines.
“Tea naturally fits into that space because it becomes part of ordinary life rather than another stressful task people feel obligated to perform perfectly.”
The process of making and taking tea naturally slows attention toward smell, taste, colour and temperature without requiring meditation apps or lengthy wellness routines.
