Nurture and seek social bonds for overall well-being

The brain is wired in such a way that our mental well-being is directly related to our social intimacy. Our species grows in society, not in isolation, as social bonding gives us a number of benefits. A system of mirror neurons (and/or other networks^[10]) is dedicated^[11] to social cognition. Talking with people helps us alleviate stress, cope with disasters, and mitigate feelings of loneliness. Investing in a relationship is a source of genuine happiness. Good friendships can make a day feel less empty, but it takes work. Social relationships help you adapt to your environment with the least amount of stress, even in situations involving death and heartbreak. Social bonds are fundamental^[12] to living a happy life and improving one’s subjective well-being. Even though nurturing social bonds can make you happy, seeking much-needed alone time is just as important.

A study on over 5,000^[13] people from The Netherlands explored personality, positive and negative life events, and social support in the context of flourishing and well-being (hedonic & eudaimonic). Flourishing is the idea that your life has gone beyond just maintaining well-being; it is booming. The analysis showed that social support and positive life events are associated with flourishing and subjective well-being. However, negative life events aren’t. Intuitively speaking, it appears, with common sense, that negative life events can make one unhappy, but the study did not find any link between well-being and negative events. The hedonic treadmill theory can explain why. It states that life events (positive and negative) only have a short-term impact on mood, well-being, and quality of life, and these factors quickly return to the baseline.