Good friends!
Good friends are fun to have around. They help you celebrate good times and they provide you with support during bad times. But good friends are also good for your health.
What else do they do for you? At the very least, they keep you from feeling lonely.
Find out what's happening in Southburyfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
That feeling of being alone that just won’t go away is also associated with high blood pressure, coronary heart disease, a diminished immune response, depression, sleep difficulties, cognitive decline and dementia although researchers don’t yet understand exactly how loneliness harms health and accelerates aging.
Many of the self-identified lonely people in a recent study were seen to have difficulty with basic housekeeping and personal tasks. They also had a 45 percent greater risk of dying earlier than older adults who felt more connected to others.
Find out what's happening in Southburyfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Loneliness is a risk factor for functional decline and early deaths in adults over 60 and is a growing problem in the US according to a recent article in The New York Times.
“In the same way you exercise, pay your taxes and eat a healthy diet, you need to start replacing friends as soon as you lose them, particularly around retirement age,” says Dr. Vaillant, author of one of the longest studies of aging in the world.
Among other things, Dr. Vaillant advises cultivating younger friends for their energy and fresh perspective. He also suggests doing volunteer work to make new friends. “Volunteering is one way to stop thinking of your own unique wonderful self,” he says. To combat loneliness, you must have someone outside yourself to be interested in — not hobbies or crossword puzzles or your stock account — but flesh and blood.
My own method of making new friends is through hobbies — traveling, knitting, taking classes at NYU. I met my husband in a writer’s group years ago. We joined a church when we moved here to meet people who share our faith.
Just remember you have to be a friend to find and keep friends. Don’t forget to visit friends who can’t visit you.
A close friend confided to me this morning that she regularly visits friends who can't get out. “I pack up tea, cookies, and all that’s necessary, making sure I have enough for any new friends she’s made in the rehab facility, and visit my friend, Sally.” Sally’s in a rehab temporarily. “She can’t come to the monthly tea party, so I take the tea party to her,” my friend continued.
There are many quotes about friends but one by Lois Wyse seems apropos: “A good friend is a connection to life, a tie to the past, a road to the future, the key to sanity in a totally insane world.”
Make sure you and your loved ones have lots of friends. You’ll live longer, better lives. Friends increase your sense of belonging, give you a sense of purpose, and they can help you care for each other.
Norma Nixon Schofield
As always, Always Best Care is here to help, offering a 'bigger picture' philosophy, ABC's reputation is built on providing one of the highest levels of individualized and customized care in today's market. Besides regular in-home care, we are able to supplement the temporary needs of people wherever they find themselves needing help. For the full story visit our site at: www.alwaysbestcarewesternct.com or call us at (203) 262 6170.
