The power of connection: Self-care strategies of social wellbeing

Abstract

Health care professionals have long regarded social contacts as a means for information or resources for patients and clients; however, new research in the field of relational neuroscience demonstrates how social connectedness is vital to human health and wellbeing. Social isolation and loneliness are viewed as risk factors that outpace common behavioral risk factors such as smoking, poor diet, lack of exercise and obesity. Health care professionals can learn to facilitate discussions and practice self-care strategies to strengthen connectedness, particular for those at-risk for social isolation and loneliness. Human beings are not only hardwired for close relationships, but when these falter or are limited, humans lose an essential means for accessing self-regulation, gaining an inner sense of safety, tapping into creative problem solving, and experiencing wholeness and enriched lives.