Most of us love the company of friends. Though there are times when anyone would appreciate some privacy, and people tend to vary in how much or how often they like to have their friends around them, there is no denying that the one who doesn’t have any close buddies is a pitiable one.
New research also has shown that we have a good chance of being happy when our friends are happy. It is actually not only our direct friends but even their friends and their friend’s friends whose happiness can have a positive impact on us according to the study. And, better still, the findings indicate that their sadness doesn’t affect us in a similar way. So having friends looks like a definite boon to our mental state.
However, one has to exercise caution in selecting one’s friends since, whatever the research results may suggest, if you let yourself be surrounded by pessimistic naysayers, you are bound to be influenced by their negativity in some way or other. This is not to suggest that we should run away from someone who is having a bad patch and therefore not feeling particularly happy right now- after all, friends are to stand by each other in good times and bad- but there is little sense in hanging around with folks who are incorrigible negativists who tend to drag down others too with them.
In today’s world, friends have become even more important than one’s relatives and can help one not only to be happy but also to live longer, according to studies. It is a good thing too as, although we couldn’t choose our relatives, we can do so with our friends. We also have to realize the difference between friends and acquaintances or colleagues because the latter types come in plenty but we generally develop just a superficial type of rapport with them. Close friends, on the hand, become a pillar of strength to us in life, fulfilling the deep-rooted need for connectedness and companionship that all healthy human beings share.
Tags: friends, happiness, live longer
