Research paperGary Judkins
Mr. Lindley
English A1
1 May 2015
The importance of being social
People often overlook how important it is to be social. If someone is shy or antisocial its often written off because its just the way they are. However, there are many health benefits of being social. Many studies have been conducted on the health benefits of being social and most will agree that social isolation is associated with poor health. A study conducted in 2003 found in Perspectives in Biology and Medicine claims that people who are socially isolated possess a less efficient system to repair and maintain physiological functioning.
Those who are socially isolated are more prone to loneliness. Loneliness is often an indicator in the beginning stages of depression. But when people get out in their communities and become active with their friends and others, the loneliness disappears. It is important to have that social support in order to stay away from feelings of loneliness. And with that support system comes more opportunities to be active and the accountability to actually follow through. “We take relationships for granted as humans,” said Julianne Holt-Lunstad, a psychologist at Brigham Young University in Utah. “That constant interaction is not only beneficial psychologically but directly to our physical health.”
It is important to be social. being socially isolated is not good for your mental, physical, and social health. by isolating yourself and not being social with people you harm your body in different ways. social people are proven to be healthier and happier than people who are socially isolated. when you isolate yourself from the world you lose touch on what’s important in life. you don’t have as many friends. you dont have friends to make you feel better when you’re down, this makes you depressed and saddened. when you are social you have friends, you’re not alone. you have friends to support you during depressing times. when you isolate yourself, you feel alone. as if you don’t have any friends. by isolating yourself you are making yourself lonely.
Being social and taking the time to laugh with friends is good for your health, And the more friends you have, the healthier you will be. A study from Carnegie Mellon University said that people with large social networks had more flu-fighting antibodies, while those who reported feeling lonely had fewer antibodies.
The Journal of the American Medical Association researchers reported that the incidence of infection among people who knew many different kinds of people was nearly half that among those who were relatively isolated.The study included 276 healthy adults from 18 to 55 years old. First, they were asked to name the types of relationships in their social circle from a list of 12. The categories included spouse, children, other relatives, neighbors, friends, colleagues at work, members of social or recreational organizations and members of religious groups.
Each category was counted if a participant spoke, either in person or on the phone, with someone from it at least once every two weeks. the volunteers were then given nose drops containing one of two cold viruses. They were put in a hotel for five days and allowed to interact, but at a distance of three or more feet so they would not infect each other. they were tested daily for signs of the virus in their nasal secretions and observed for cold symptoms like runny nose and congestion. they researched the people with the most categories of social relationships had the lowest susceptibility to colds. the report stated that 35 percent of the people had six or more types of relationships. 43 percent of those had four to five types. and about 62 percent of those had three or fewer. When they did get colds, the people with the most social ties had the mildest symptoms.
A study Conducted by the Centre for Ageing Studies at Flinders University followed nearly 1,500 older people for 10 years. It found that those who had a large network of friends outlived those with the fewest friends by 22%. “I think we make a compelling case that social relationships should also be taken quite seriously in terms of reducing risk of mortality,” said study researcher Julianne Holt-Lunstad, a psychologist at Brigham Young University in Utah. Using data from the Australian Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ALSA), the team from the University of Adelaide asked almost 1,500 over-70s about levels of contact with children, relatives and friends, either personally or over the phone.
The participants were monitored over 10 years and the researchers considered factors such as socioeconomic status and lifestyle which might also influence survival rates.They concluded that close contact with children and other relatives had little impact on survival rates over the 10-year period. However the researchers did find that a strong network of friends and confidants significantly improved the chances of survival among those that they studied.Those elderly people with the strongest network of friends lived longer than those with the fewest friends.
Health professionals might be better able to find people at risk if they know to look more deeply at an individual’s social environment. So rather than only focusing on those who seem to be entirely socially isolated, health care workers could also encourage friendship and personal connectedness for a larger number of peoplethus perhaps boosting overall population survival rates. Although social and physical health are intimately linked, Holt-Lunstadan (associate psychology professor at Brigham Young University and co-author of the new study, published online July 27 in PLoS Medicine.) does not see it as a purely medical issue. She suggests arange of avenues to address the social fitness of the population: from school curriculums emphasizing good social skills to city planning that reinforce community building to workplaces that accentuate human interaction.
your friends are always there for you.. they give you a sense of security. someone you can trust. if you isolate yourself you wont have friends to support you. without friends to support you, you wont be secure. youll be uncomfortable and always worrying. friends help give you a sense of comfort and security. being involved in social activities at places such as church helps you have a feeling of security and belonging. surrounding yourself with people who love and care for you has been proven to make you feel like you belong.
Friendships can be tough sometimes. You may be making new friends while still trying to keep old friends. It can also be hard to know what to do when you dont agree with a friend. Keep in mind, you can have a good friendship and still fight sometimes. A person who truly knows and loves you a real friend is someone who sees the pain in your eyes while everyone else still believes the smile on your face. Dont look for someone who will solve all your problems; look for someone who will face them with you.Simply believing in another person, and showing it in your words and deeds, can make a huge difference in their life. Studies of people who grew up in dysfunctional homes but who grew up to be happy and successful show that the one thing they had in common was someone who believed in them. Do this for those you care about. Support their dreams and passions and hobbies. Participate with them. Cheer for them. Be nothing but encouraging. Whether they actually accomplish these dreams or not, your belief is of infinite importance to them. Friends are always there for you, and they understand you. if you isolate yourself, you wont have friends to be there for you. being social helps to keep you happy and healthy.
when you isolate yourself from the world, there is no one there to be your friend. with no one there, you feel all alone. when you r alone you get sad and lonely. without friends to make you feel like you belong you get lonelier. if you socially isolate yourself, chances are you r lonely. social isolation has been proven to make you lonely.
By isolating yourself, you lose friends. when you lose friends you’re all alone. when you r alone you begin to feel lonely. “Someone who’s socially isolated is likely to be lonely, and vice versa” says epidemiologist and lead author Andrew Steptoe of University College London. when you r isolated, you r alone, when you r alone you r lonely. concluding you r alone when you r isolated.
The physical, mental and emotional effects of living in solitary seem to be beyond the control of the person experiencing them. It seems that the brain needs a certain quantity, quality, or type of stimuli to help regulate, direct and prioritize thought processes and other brain functions properly. It could mean that without enough stimuli, the level of random activity in the nervous system increase. when this happens you become extremely lonely. being away from others makes you lonely.
when you isolate yourself from others you dont have near as many friends. without friends your lonely, the less friends you have the more lonely you get. when you isolate yourself you have less friends than if you were social. therefore by isolating yourself you will have less friends. and with less friends your lonelier.
Having meaningful friendships can help you grow as a person, have more fun, and broaden your perspective. when you isolate yourself you have less friends. with less friends your lonely. without friends, it is hard to grow as a person, have more fun, and to broaden your perspective. with it being hard to do that you lose track of whats important
According to wikipedia, the definition of isolation is a complete or near-complete lack of contact with people and society for members of a social species. social isolation literally means avoiding people, when you avoid people you get lonely. you’re all by yourself. social isolation makes you lonely.
When youre depressed, you may not feel like seeing anybody or doing anything. Just getting out of bed in the morning can be difficult, but isolating yourself only makes depression worse. Make it a point to stay social, even if thats the last thing you want to do. As you get out into the world, you may find yourself feeling better.Spend time with friends, especially those who are active, upbeat, and make you feel good about yourself. Avoid hanging out with those who abuse drugs or alcohol, get you into trouble, or who make you feel insecure.
Being socially isolated causes depression.”When we’re clinically depressed, there’s a very strong urge to pull away from others and to shut down,” says Stephen Ilardi, PhD, author of books including The Depression Cure and associate professor of psychology at the University of Kansas. “It turns out to be the exact opposite of what we need.” Ilardi says. “Social withdrawal amplifies the brain’s stress response. Social contact helps put the brakes on it. when isolated you do not have as many friends, when you have less friends you are lonely, when you are lonely you are more likely to get depressed. therefore, when you isolate yourself you are putting yourself in a position to get lonely, and depressed.
everyday the average person spends at least an hour on facebook. most people these days have hardly any friends. social networking and other things are getting in the way of our social lives. being on facebook and other social networks gives you less time to spend with friends, the less time you have for friends. the less friends youll have. with less friends you find yourself beginning to feel lonely.
when you are lonely, you feel no one is there. without people being there for you when you need them, you slowly become depressed. loneliness is one of the top ten causes for depression. lonely people are often socially isolated. they dont have as many friends and that causes them to get depressed easier.
withdrawing yourself from others creates a loneliness inside of you. with that loneliness comes depression. social withdrawal is a red flag when trying to figure out if your depressed or not. there can be many reasons why you withdraw yourself from others, but no matter what reason social withdrawal is one of the most common signs of depression.
when you are socially isolated, you lose friends. when you lose friends who will be there for you when you need them. even when there are some friends there for you, more than likely you will not accept help from them.
in conclusion, social people are more healthy and happy, social people are not near as lonely, and social people are less likely to be depressed. therefore, it is important to be social, by not being social you are making your life harder than it has to be. with friends and family to support you, you can do almost anything you dream of. the more people you have behind you supporting you, the more likely you are to succeed. being social is very important if you want to have successful life.
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