WE know that babies yawn and it delights us to see them do so. But did you know that infants yawn even while inside the womb?
Everybody yawns. Some animals yawn too. It’s one of the most ordinary, commonplace things we do in life. Yet like a careless whisper, one untimely yawn can do harm to someone.
I still remember what happened to my creative teammate during my ad agency days some years ago. During a critical pitch for a major new account, as my peer was presenting his concepts, the client yawned suddenly and tactlessly without covering his mouth. A tense pause. Then as my colleague tentatively resumed his presentation, the client yawned a second time although he tried to stifle it. In a few seconds after that, others from the client’s panel caught the yawning virus. Terribly unnerved, my poor teammate unraveled thereafter and it goes without saying, we didn’t win the pitch.
Was it deliberate? Was that the client’s way of saying cut the b.s.? I don’t know, although I vaguely remember the client making a lame apology, saying he didn’t have enough sleep the night before.
Even before that, I already knew that the said colleague was a touchy fellow, with self-confidence problems. But that unfortunate yawning incident was the proverbial straw that broke the camel’s back, so to speak. It wounded his self-esteem so deeply that even today he gets the jitters when he is asked to go on stage, or say a few words in front of people. Ever since then, he had become more withdrawn; probably seeing himself as an irredeemable loser. His intimate friends (very few) make it a point not to yawn whenever he’s present. It’s unfortunate because the guy has a brilliant mind.
If you yawn in the presence of others, the message it carries is that you’re bored or you’re not interested. For instance, when you suddenly yawn in meetings or lectures or while in a conversation it usually comes across as impolite, rude and vulgar, especially if you won’t even cover your mouth. In general, it would be seen as a sign of disrespect or poor upbringing.
That being said, the negative message a yawn imparts can sometimes be useful. It can serve as a cue for someone to stop, such as a resource speaker who has digressed too far from his topic or a talking head who is so carried away that he keeps chattering interminably long after he has made his point. Truth be told, I too had my share of humiliation seeing wide-open yawns in my classes as a trying hard lecturer some years ago. I took it as a measure of my poor performance as a speaker. I quickly got the message (stick to writing) and just swallowed my pride.
But some choose to lash back against yawners. Several years ago, a Cornell University professor was offended by a yawning student and said this to his class: “If I hear one more of these overly loud yawns, get up and walk the hell out! Yawn outside! …You should be asking yourself. Why am I the one loser who has to yawn and 220 other people know better?”
That brief tirade was caught on video and uploaded on YouTube where it got more than a million views. It even inspired a line of Yawn Outside shirts. Was the offended professor right to demand better behavior from his students? Or was he just over reacting and should have just ignored the yawning? Instead of heaping scorn on the yawner, shouldn’t he not self-reflected on his skill as a teacher? Or maybe the student was merely a convenient outlet for his personal problems that day?
Does yawning really and automatically mean someone is bored or disengaged? What does science say about yawning?
Here’s the kicker. While yawning is associated with sleepiness and boredom, some researchers say that yawning is not a sign of sleepiness or boredom. It is actually an involuntary reflex response to lack of stimulation. Watching television, listening to a lecture, studying, reading or long distance driving are tasks or circumstances that put you in a low-active state that can make you yawn. What happens is that when you yawn some hormones are released that briefly increase the heart rate and alertness. Your brain is just trying to wake you up and make you pay attention and focus even if only for a brief time.
Yawning is cool, says Dr. Andrew Gallup, a yawning expert and assistant professor of psychology at the University at Albany. He says that when people yawn, they’re cooling off their brains. He explains: “Brains are like computers. They only operate efficiently and effectively when they’re cool.” He said many things associated with yawning, like being tired or not sleeping for extended periods of time, can actually raise brain temperature, and yawning can alleviate the heat. In other words, think of the yawn as the brain’s air conditioner.
Thus, contrary to our impression that yawning is rude and insulting, Dr. Gallup asserts that “yawning is really a compliment, because it suggests that brain mechanisms have kicked in to reinstate and optimize mental processing.”
As proof, he says that elite athletes often yawn immediately before competition, and public speakers yawn prior to giving a presentation. Do you think these people are dis-engaged or bored? They yawn because they are mentally stimulating themselves.
So next time a friend yawns while you’re talking, don’t take offense too readily. Choose to believe that he’s just trying to stimulate himself to listen more intently to what you’re saying. Oh yeah? The cynical half of me says that’s just denying the obvious.
But here’s something that can’t be denied. Yawning is good exercise. It helps stretch your mouth muscles, as well as lung tissues. When you yawn, extend your arms at the same time. Doing so helps flex your muscles and activate your joints while quickening your heart rate. Furthermore, you’ll also feel more awake and re-invigorated.
The curious thing about yawning is that it’s contagious. For some reason, seeing another person yawn can cause others in the room to yawn themselves. Knowing that yawning is catching, here’s a naughty thought. Why not employ the contagiousness of yawning to serve a social purpose? For crying out loud, why not use the rudeness of yawning for something productive for the good of all?
Why don’t we organize a people’s movement to yawn out the corrupt and incompetents out of government, called “Hikab ng Sambayanan Movement”? This is similar to the “tang ping” or lying in movement in China in which young people choose to “lie down flat via a low-desire, more indifferent attitude towards life” as a protest against lack of social mobility and economic stagnation.
It could be an ingenious new weapon of protest in the arsenal of non-violent change. Imagine this for a moment. Every time a corrupt or incompetent politician spews lies and hollow promises, instead of clapping, why don’t we all yawn and groan loudly?
Let’s use the act of yawning to send a clear “no” message to the unwanted and the unqualified. Let’s harness yawn power to bring down the degenerate and dishonorable and usher in a new and better generation of leaders our nation has long hoped for and truly deserves.