Friendships are what keep us going – it helps us maintain a a happy life, and discover great emotional and physical balance. This is of course philosophically saying. There are scientific facts that back this theory up –and it is all penned down in Leaver’s book of “The friendship cure – reconnecting in the modern world”.
This book analyses friendships from a deeper angle, and helps us understand why some friendships mean a lot more to us than some others. It also answers the reason of why we face the loneliness epidemic too.
The human psyche in friendship
We are all social animals and it is impossible for us to stay without interaction. We are thus evolutionarily wired for friendship – something that is imprinted down in our psyche. Friendships release all feel-good chemicals like Oxytocin, Endorphins, and all of this brings in a sense of belonging somewhere.
All of these friendships make it easier for us to handle all of life’s difficulties.
How many friendships can we handle?
There has been an intensive study which concluded that we can handle a maximum of 150 social connections. This would mean about 5 extremely close friends, 10 close friends, and the rest 35 would be friends, while 100 acquaintances. Leaver in her book talks about how the humans cannot handle relationships more than this. They disintegrate out soon.
Working on friendships and toward a more meaningful life
One should think about the friendships one is handling in. A person’s presence or absence for that matter can very much affect one’s life – choosing good friends would mean that one would prosper in a positive way. Sustaining healthy friendships with positive people can help improve health and mental state of mind.
The bottom line stays that we need friends to tell us the right direction, provide us with support, and help us survive in the regular battle we call life. That is why we need to work on all the friendships that keep us motivated!
