Your mental and physical health is impacted by the number of relationships you have. The quality of these relationships and the interactions throughout your life play a key role in your well-being.
There are a lot of advantages to having strong social ties and positive mental health. Evidence suggests a correlation between higher levels of self-esteem and lower rates of anxiety and depression, as well as better levels of empathy and more trusting and cooperative relationships. Your immune system may be strengthened by having strong, healthy connections. These relationships can also help you recover from illness, increase your self-esteem, and give you the courage to make difficult choices.
Even better? While many of these advantages have the potential to make you happier in your life, there is also an energetic flow to the relationship. This means people in your immediate environment will want to spend time with you. In this sense, a positive feedback loop of social, emotional, and physical wellness is generated as a result of social connectivity. These relationships provide a sense of purpose, which may ultimately add years to your life, according to a study conducted in 2014.
Knowing that positive relationships promote positive health and wellness, you might wonder if a negative relationship or minimal social interactions can also impact your life. According to a University of Michigan study that spanned two decades, social isolation or prolonged conflict with people impacts our lives for the worse.
The study concluded that higher instances of inflammation, hypertension and decreased immunity were all results of these negative relationships. It’s thought that the increased stress due to conflict plays a major role in our overall well-being.
Since we tend to be pleasers and social beings, we may find ourselves in these negative relationships for a long time. We might not recognize the relationship as unhealthy, or we are trying to fix what is broken. Addressing the situation and trying to work through the conflict is essential. It becomes more of an issue when only one person works towards a positive conclusion. This situation can lead to added stress, feelings of failure, and lower self-esteem.
In instances of negative relationships, it’s even more important to have a strong support system on the positive end. We need people willing to stand by us as we navigate our way through, for however long it takes. Eliminating any of our social connections causes a ripple effect on our well-being. Our positive relationships help us heal as we move forward.
