Gemma McCaw’s 6 Powerful Tips to Strengthen Your Relationships
Gemma McCaw’s 6 Powerful Tips to Strengthen Your Relationships
Nurturing our relationships and fostering new connections can make us happier and healthier. Let’s dive into how we can achieve this.
Understanding Connection
American researcher and podcast host Brené Brown defines connection as the energy that exists between people when they feel seen, heard, and valued. This energy allows them to give and receive without judgment, drawing strength and sustenance from the relationship.
The Importance of Relationships
There’s no doubt that relationships are fundamental to our wellbeing. Strong, supportive relationships are the number-one predictor for wellbeing. Without them, we simply can’t flourish. People are at the heart of this, and we feel safest in the presence of familiar and nurturing friends, family, and community members. Good relationships provide a buffer from stress and regulate the brain’s response systems, making them vital for our health and wellbeing.
How to Nurture Relationships
1. Cultivate Friendships
The experiences that contribute to our wellbeing are often amplified through our relationships. These include great joy, meaning, laughter, a feeling of belonging, and pride in accomplishment. Surround yourself with people who support and encourage you, and truly invest in these relationships. Remember, it’s the quality of relationships, not the quantity, that matters.
2. Give Love
Show people you love them through your actions and words. We are often told to love ourselves, but the truth is, you cannot love yourself unless you have been loved and are loved. Child trauma expert Dr. Bruce Perry states that if a baby receives predictable love and attention in the first two months of their life, this has a more powerful influence on emotional health than negative experiences in the next 10-12 years.
3. Volunteer
Looking for a sure-fire way to connect? Volunteer. Creating connections with others can give life purpose and meaning. Donating your time and energy is a great way to do this. There are many amazing organizations always keen to welcome new volunteers. You can also start in your own neighborhood by dropping off a meal to a new mum, packing an extra school lunch for a child in need, or helping an elderly neighbor. Supporting your own friends and family is another great way to volunteer your time.
4. Random Acts of Kindness
Try doing something for someone else and notice how that connection makes you feel. Support from and connection with others is one of the best antidotes to life’s challenges and a reliable way to feel good. Research shows that doing acts of kindness for others increases wellbeing.
5. Repair Relationships
Relationships can be challenging for various reasons, but the ability to repair them can be your secret weapon. This applies to all our connections, whether they’re with a romantic partner, family member, friend, or colleague. Everyone makes mistakes, and all relationships can run into problems sometimes. What matters is how we repair them. If an interaction hasn’t gone as planned, reach out and repair it. Be open to communication and do your part to reconnect.
6. Connect with Others
Research suggests that our pain centers become activated when we are at risk of isolation. From an evolutionary perspective, being alone is one of the worst things for our survival. When you are feeling lonely, it’s important to reach out and reconnect socially with someone you know or pick up the phone and talk. Our brain needs to know that we belong to a group, which helps us feel safe and valued. Lack of social connection is a greater threat to our health than smoking or high blood pressure, so it is imperative we place importance on our connections with others.
