Social wellness is about creating healthy connections and relationships with others around you, and it can impact your overall mental health. If you’re feeling like a social caterpillar instead of a social butterfly, here are six tips to help improve your social wellness.
Whether you’re shy or outgoing, making meaningful connections with loved ones and people in your community can boost your mental health. The National Institutes of Health has a social wellness toolkit that includes six strategies to help you prioritize and maintain your social wellness.
Make connections.
According to the NIH, social connections with family members, friends, neighbors, romantic partners, and other members of your community tend to influence health and well-being. Look for ways to get involved with others. Try attending a workout class with friends, joining a local club or organization, volunteering with coworkers, or something else.
Take care of yourself while caring for others.
Whether you’re caring for aging parents, supporting a friend through a hard time, or watching over a sick spouse, it’s important to find healthy ways to handle the stress of being a caregiver. Find self-care strategies that help you keep healthy boundaries while still allowing you to be there for loved ones as they need you.
Get active together.
If you’re feeling unmotivated to get moving, try inviting someone else to work out with you. The more people you get to join you, the better. According to the NIH, research shows that social support can help encourage you to reach your physical activity goals and make lifestyle changes to improve your health.
Shape your family’s health habits.
Whether you’re a parent, a grandparent, or an aunt or uncle, know that your daily behavior can have an impact on the kids in your family. Take steps to show your kids, grandkids, or nieces and nephews that living a healthy lifestyle doesn’t have to be difficult. Encourage your family to connect in meaningful ways.
Bond with your kids.
The social skills needed to form relationships are often formed during childhood. As parents, it’s important to make sure your children know what healthy relationships look like. Consistency, sensitivity, responsiveness, and availability will help you form and maintain strong, healthy relationships with your kids.
Build healthy relationships.
Knowing what a healthy relationship looks like will help you build and keep strong, lasting relationships with those around you. Creating and maintaining supportive relationships will be important throughout your whole life. You’re never too old to find ways to improve connections with loved ones and strengthen your support system.
Having healthy relationships with those around you can be a key part of maintaining good mental health. Make sure you spend time with loved ones as often as you can. Find more ways to invest in your social wellness along with additional resources in the NIH social wellness Toolkit.
