What are some of the ways that you take care of yourself?

I spend a lot of time thinking of new ways that I can improve my overall well-being. I read new books (mystery and suspense appear to be my new thing), blog, listen to comforting music, and planning mini getaways.

Out of all of these options, nothing is more important to me than spending time with the significant people in my life.

I absolutely love being with my support team!

They give me life, and they help me to recharge. I’ve realized that being around others helps me to relax.  If I’m having a not so great day, I actually sit and reflect on how to make things better, weigh the outcomes of any pros and cons of my day.

But!

What works best for me is being able to communicate with others. Not just anyone, but someone who I can honestly trust with my feelings. Someone whose perspective means the world to me.  I enjoy being able to bounce ideas off of, and just vent to these listening ears.

I’m fortunate enough to have a huge group of people who will always have my best interests in mind. Being around these individuals helps me to reduce any unnecessary stress, make me laugh, and help to get my mind off of the latest “issue”.

Those of you who may be struggling to find energy, find yourself becoming more irritable and unhappy, and have tried different ways to recharge, with very little success…try reaching out to friends and family. They may not even know how much of a positive influence they can be in your life. You may not even know how helpful these individuals can be.

How do you make new friends?

While away in Mexico for my recent vacation, I pushed myself to meet new people. Instead of waiting for someone to “notice” me, I initiated many of the conversations with others. For the 7 days that I was in Mexico, I figured that I’d make the most of the trip, since this was basically my home away from home. I participated in activities that I would normally shy away from (pool volleyball is an example of this). The sound of the activity didn’t necessarily appeal to me, but I gave it a try anyway.

These structured activities were a great way for many new people to meet. My team obviously had a shared goal in mind, and we definitely worked hard with achieving this by any means (quite successfully might I add).  As I discussed in my previous post (My Time Away In Mexico), I was able to gain new friendships. I plan on keeping in contact with each of them!

You can also try to:

• Join a gym to find a group of people who share similar interests (different classes: zumba, cycling, etc).
• Have a potluck at your house (I plan on doing so this week). Each person can bring a friend in addition to a dish.
• Spend time with co-workers (get to know them outside of work? Maybe you’ll have more in common than you think).

Don’t have any close family or friends whom you would consider confiding in? Take it outside then, and meet some new faces!! Many of us enjoy blogging, and even share some of the most intimate details of our lives with others within the blogging community. I think this is great! I absolutely love blogging, and look forward to continue meeting such wonderful people.

How about using that same confidence used via Internet connection, and use that in our everyday lives as well??

Share a little bit more with others, be open to trying new things, and starting conversations with a new face. I’m hoping that you’ll be able to make some healthy, long-lasting relationships with new people. Your health just might depend on it!

But first, you’ll have to be willing to put in the work. I personally don’t thrive on relationships where I don’t feel as though I’m benefiting from. I want to share details about my life, and want others to be willing to do the same. So, be sure to have an idea in mind about what type of relationships you’d like to have with others.

How do you make new friends? What are you looking for in a friend?

~FreeBryd

Image #1: http://kushsrivastava.com/

Image #2: http://www.collegeadmissionsbible.com/