Mental Health Week 2022

Five Ways to Wellbeing: #5 Give 

“It is one of the most beautiful compensations of this life that no man can sincerely try to help another without helping himself.”
— Ralph Waldo Emerson

Research shows that giving – that is, engaging in actions for the benefit or wellbeing of others – increases our own happiness and satisfaction with life. When we give to others, it activates the areas of the brain associated with pleasure, social connection and trust. Giving to others releases endorphins in the brain and boosts happiness for us as well as the people we help. Evidence suggests that people who give to others might also be rewarded with better physical health, including lower blood pressure and a longer lifespan. Helping others can help us to feel more connected, and can also increase our own self-worth and self-esteem, and even increase perceptions that life is meaningful. Sometimes, it can just take our minds off our own troubles. 

If you are feeling a bit stuck in your own life, one of the best things you can do for your mental health is to take action to help others. Consider the following:

1.    Giving

Research indicates that spending money to benefit other people can lead to greater happiness and meaning in life compared to spending money to benefit oneself. 

Give it a go: 

• Buy a friend a coffee
• Send a loved one flowers
• Donate money to charity
• Loan money to people in need. Kiva is a non-profit organisation where you can lend money to entrepreneurs from low-income countries to help them build their own businesses. Learn more here: https://www.kiva.org/

2.    Volunteering

Giving your time to assist others is associated with higher levels of happiness and life satisfaction. To search for volunteering opportunities within Australia go to: https://govolunteer.com.au/

3.    Express Gratitude

Spending 5-10 minutes writing short notes of gratitude to people who have positively influenced your life is related to enhanced meaning in life. 

4.    Kindness

A large body of research suggests that performing acts of kindness increases wellbeing. Research suggests that we reap more personal benefits when kind acts are novel and varied (rather than repeating the same kind act week after week). 

Give it a go:

• Send a thank you email
• Offer to help someone with a project
• Ask a colleague how they are and really listen
• Give someone a genuine complement
• Donate blood (www.lifeblood.com.au/blood) 
• Take your dog to a new dog park
• Visit an elderly relative
• Lend a hand if you see someone struggling with their shopping
• Give up your seat on the train

Need inspiration? Check out The Kindness Factory.

If you would like to learn more about strategies that may benefit your wellbeing, book a free session with ARV’s Mental Health Clinician/Consultant, psychologist Adele Bergin, here.

Check out the Other Ways to Wellbeing here

Source

The five ways to wellbeing (connect, be active, take notice, keep learning and give) were developed by the New Economics Foundation for the Department of Health in the UK (https://neweconomics.org/2008/10/five-ways-to-wellbeing). Health organisations throughout Australia frequently promote these five evidence-based strategies to promote wellbeing  (see, e.g., Northern Health: Five Ways to Wellbeing https://www.5waystowellbeing.org.au/).