toGIVE is to Receive
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BY ADAM BAILEY
hink the whole holiday gift giving thing is completely overdone and a waste of time and money? Think again. Studies show that a little generosity can actually benefit your wellbeing. Need proof? Here are some benefits.
Giving Makes You Feel Happy. Seeing the pure joy on the faces of someone you’ve just helped or given a gift brings you immediate joy as well, right? Right. According to Psychology Today, humans can enjoy something called the “helper’s high,” an instant sense of fulfillment and comfort when you see someone happy with an action you’ve performed. The helper’s high is actually your body’s release of the chemical dopamine, a feel-good neurotransmitter. Your body is chemically telling itself to feel happy. Giving is Good for Your Health. Giving back is obviously a heart-warming affair but it could also do a whole lot more for your heart than warm it. Studies show that giving helps lower your blood pressure and levels of anxiety—both major contributors to heart disease. There’s even research suggesting that giving can help givers, especially older adults, sleep more soundly. Feeling a little blue? Go out and make someone else’s day, and sleep better at night. Literally! Giving Enhances Your Social Network and Improves Relationships. By nature, humans are social creatures, so through giving, you’re building better social connections and contributing to your role in society—leading to increased confidence and a positive self-image and decreased negative emotions. For example, when you volunteer or give monetarily, you become part of a caring, united and cohesive group. By becoming part of this community, you will be afforded numerous chances to meet new people and to make new friends, where you will have ample opportunity to demonstrate that you care about others and value those relationships. In so doing, others will reciprocate by drawing closer to you. This dynamic interaction will not only make a difference in someone else’s life, but it will also improve your social support and strengthen your network—thus giving you a greater feeling of belonging to something greater than yourself.
Giving Evokes a Sense of Empathy and Gratitude. Empathy is the ability to understand and share the feelings of another—and it is a particularly valuable emotion and a concrete benefit of charitable giving. Specifically, when you see others in need, you literally can feel their pain.
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DECEMBER 2021
| SBMAG.NET
