Is It Normal to Rewatch the Same Series: A Psychologist's Opinion 0 9

Why do we rewatch our favorite series? We explore this habit from the perspective of psychology, brain function, and our deep-seated needs. This will be aided by clinical psychologist Elena Spirina.

How Often Do People Rewatch Series — And Why It’s Normal

A study titled "Play It Again: People Find Comfort in Listening to the Same Songs Over and Over" from February 15, 2018 (author Jared Wadley, University of Michigan) showed that 86% of people listen to their favorite song at least once a week, and almost half do so every day.

60% reported that they immediately put the song on repeat, and many fell in love with it after the third or fourth listen. The average number of repeats for a song is 300 times. There are several similar studies regarding favorite books, favorite movies, and series. People tend to return to places where they felt good. And a large part of the population does this with enviable regularity.

Why We Do This: The Psychology and Neurophysiology of Rewatching

When a person rewatched a series, they receive several strong psychological bonuses.

1. Reduced Anxiety

When we know what will happen in the next scene, the brain gains a sense of control. This creates a feeling of safety. We always feel calmer when we can foresee our future. This lowers cortisol levels and soothes the nervous system. Neurophysiologists call this the effect of a predictable environment. It works like a psychological blanket — a protection that provides a sense of security.

In conditions of chronic stress, work problems, chronic fatigue, unresolved conflicts, etc., the need for such a blanket increases significantly, and we begin to feel a near necessity for predicting our future and having a sense of control over the situation. This is where our old, good, and well-known series come to our aid.

2. Pleasure

If you watched a series during a calm, happy, or inspiring time in your life, in pleasant company, and if it evoked pleasant emotions or happy associations, the brain remembers it as an event that brings pleasure.

And in moments of lacking this very pleasure in life, we feel the need to watch a pleasant familiar movie or series. Because rewatching brings you back to that state and those emotions. It’s like opening an old photo album — only faster and brighter.

3. Low Cognitive Load: Familiar Plots Relax

New plots require attention, analysis, and synthesis of information. We think that watching a new movie allows us to rest and relax, but in reality, new films require serious work from the brain, consuming a lot of energy. While already familiar scenes with a predictable plot allow the brain to relax.

From a neurophysiological perspective, rewatching reduces the activity of the prefrontal cortex (the analytical area), and the brain finally gets to rest.

That’s why some need sports or meditation, while others need to turn on a series.

4. Stability: A Ritual That Creates a Sense of Stability in a Chaotic World

"Every time I come home from work and prepare dinner, I put on another episode; it gives me strength and calmness, and everything doesn’t seem so scary anymore..." — said one of my clients. For many of us, series can become a kind of anchor, creating a sense of stability and ritual.

Many rewatch certain series:

• while cleaning,
• while cooking,
• when they come home,
• when they are stressed,
• getting ready for work.

This is a ritual that creates a "point of support" in a chaotic world. Our world is very dynamic; every day we encounter new people, new information, new challenges. And everything new, even positive, is stress for our brain, and series act as an island of stability, providing a sense of safety.

5. A Way to Experience Loneliness and Emotional Hunger

In the modern world of chasing results and achievements, we often sacrifice time for communication with loved ones, which often leads to feelings of loneliness and emotional hunger.

Series create the illusion of having people around. And not just any people, but well-known personalities for whom we care, with whom we triumph, and for whom we rejoice. This is especially noticeable in sitcoms — the brain perceives laughter and emotions as part of the social environment.

"I rewatch 'The Big Bang Theory' when I feel lonely. They are like a company that is always with me," — one of my clients told me during a session. Thus, series fulfill the need for communication and emotions, creating the illusion of presence in this company and allowing us to relive those emotions again and again.

Thus, familiar series serve as a kind of therapy and prevention of anxiety, emotional hunger, and loneliness, giving us a sense of stability and safety and partly helping to cope with stress. But is it all harmless? Let’s examine the other side of the coin.

Rewatching Favorite Series Again and Again: When It’s a Warning Signal and a Reason to Reassess Your Habits

1. If the series becomes the only way to calm down and cope with stress A person begins to turn on a familiar plot every time they feel anxious, scared, lonely, or overwhelmed with fatigue. Marina returns home from work tense.

Instead of having dinner, talking to loved ones, going for a walk, or doing something enjoyable, she automatically turns on her favorite series "in the background." After a while, she realizes that she does this every evening without exception. Not because she wants to — but because it feels anxious and empty without the series.

What Such a Habit Can Lead To:

• A person stops being able to relax and calm down without an external "calmative";
• Emotional sensitivity decreases — it becomes harder to recognize one’s emotions and needs;
• Real life begins to "fade," and pleasures become limited to one scenario;
• Emotional dependence grows: to feel normal, one needs to turn on a familiar plot again and again.

2. If series become a way to avoid tasks and decisions, as well as a way to "not think" about important things

Often we postpone making a difficult decision or completing a task and instead escape into the world of a series. As a result — plans fall through, tasks pile up, mood dims, self-esteem drops, and to gain pleasure, we again escape into the world of illusions.

3. If series become a substitute for live contacts and communication

Series definitely cannot replace live human communication and cannot provide the same effect. But they can create a habit where we spend more and more time with them rather than with real people. A habit that leaves emptiness behind.

If series begin to displace live contacts, a person gradually loses the skill of emotional closeness and switches to isolation mode. This leads to feelings of emptiness, decreased mood, distance in relationships, and an increase in the inner sense of loneliness — even if it seems externally that "everything is fine."

"I get so tired during the week that I always spend my weekends with my favorite series, and I didn’t notice how I completely stopped communicating with my friends and started feeling very lonely."

How to Understand That Everything Is Fine with Rewatching?

Ask yourself three questions:

• Am I watching this to relax and pass the time — or to avoid feelings/tasks?
• How do I feel after watching — lightness or emptiness?
• Am I choosing the series — or is it choosing for me?

If the answers are honest and calm — everything is fine.

If there’s a feeling of "I’ve been swept away" — additional support is needed.

How Else Can You Meet the Same Needs — Besides Series

If Predictability and Safety Are Needed:

• Incorporate simple rituals into your daily practice (a tea/coffee ritual — dedicate 10 minutes every day at the same time when you can just be alone with yourself; walk the same route; any regular actions that don’t require mental and emotional load).

• Repetitive physical activity: knitting, cooking, drawing, yoga, sports.

If Emotional Support Is Needed:

• Warm meetings, contacts with people, especially with relatives and close ones, whose meetings bring joy and provide a good emotional charge.

• Interest groups — any shared hobby will provide pleasant emotions.

• Short calls to loved ones — a person who understands and supports us always fills us with positivity.

• Emotion diary — tracking one’s state allows us to manage it.

If You Need to Rest from Thoughts:

• Monotonous activities (puzzles, gardening, cleaning, paint by numbers).

• Breathing techniques (inhale for a count of 4, exhale for a count of 8, 10, 12 — and so on for four cycles).

• Dumping thoughts on paper — write down everything that comes in a thought stream, without analysis and structure.

If You Want a Sense of "Home":

• Warm light, favorite scents, soft textures, hugs.

• Evening home rituals (take a bath, read a book, play with children).

• Music (soothing, favorite); you can add movement to the music.

If You Need Joy:

• Everything new: new hobbies, short trips to new places, new dishes, new acquaintances.

• Creativity, various manifestations (paint by numbers, mandalas, abstractions).

• Change of impressions.

Rewatching favorite series is absolutely normal. It is a mechanism of emotional self-regulation embedded in the psyche.

The problem arises only when the series becomes the only way to experience stress. And if you notice that rewatching has become the only place where you feel calm — it’s not about the series. It’s a signal that resources are lacking, and the psyche needs support. And this is precisely the moment when working with a psychologist helps.