BUILDING SOCIAL BONDS
Strong, healthy relationships are
important throughout your life.
Your social ties with family members,
friends, neighbors, coworkers,
and others impact your mental,
emotional, and even physical
well-being.
“We can’t underestimate the
power of a relationship in helping
to promote well-being,” says NIH
psychologist and relationship expert
Dr. Valerie Maholmes. Studies
have found that having a variety of
social relationships may help reduce
stress and heart-related risks.
Strong social ties are even linked to
a longer life. On the other hand,
loneliness and social isolation are
linked to poorer health, depression,
and increased risk of early
death.
As a child you learn the social
skills you need to form and maintain
relationships with others. But
at any age you can learn ways to
improve your relationships.
20 Healthy Living | Spring Issue | 2018
NIH funds research to find
out what causes unhealthy relationship
behavior. Researchers
have created community, family,
and school-based programs to
help people learn to have healthier
relationships. These programs
also help prevent abuse and violence
toward others.
Every relationship exists
on a spectrum from healthy to
unhealthy to abusive. One sign
of a healthy relationship is feeling
good about yourself around
your partner, family member,
or friend. You feel safe talking
about how you feel. You listen
to each other. You feel valued,
and you trust each other.
“It’s important for people to
recognize and be aware of any
time where there is a situation
in their relationship that doesn’t
feel right to them or that makes
them feel less than who they
are,” Maholmes advises.
It’s normal for people to disagree
with each other. But conflicts
shouldn’t turn into personal
attacks. In a healthy relationship,
you can disagree without hurting
each other and make decisions together.
“No relationship should be
based on that power dynamic
where someone is constantly putting
the other partner down,” Maholmes
says.
If you grew up in a family with
abuse, it may be hard as an adult
to know what healthy is. Abuse
may feel normal to you. There
are several kinds of abuse, including
physical, sexual, and verbal or
emotional. Hurting with words,
neglect, and withholding affection
are examples of verbal or emotional
abuse.
In an unhealthy or abusive
relationship, your partner may
blame you for feeling bad about
something they did or said. They