Boost Your Mental Health This Season!
Posted on November 20 2025
If you are feeling the weight of the world, or feeling anxious about the holiday season, there is hope! What if the antidote to all this stress isn’t found in another self-help book or wellness trend, but in each other? Science is proving that real, in-person connections are the key to reducing stress, improving your physical well-being, and even extending your lifespan.
One of the best ways to increase connections and lower your stress levels might be to shift the focus outward. Acts of generosity and kindness - whether it’s volunteering, helping a friend, checking in on a loved one, or even offering a kind word - activate the brain’s reward system, releasing oxytocin and serotonin, the “feel-good” hormones. It may be easier than you think. You can integrate small acts of kindness into your day by smiling as you pass others, sharing an honest complement to a stranger, and sharing good 20-second hugs with those you care about.
And a hot tip from a 2017 study from the National Institute of Health: they found that older adults who volunteered regularly had a 44% lower mortality rate compared to those who didn’t. Simply put, kindness isn’t just good for the soul, it’s good for the body too. It’s like nature’s way of rewarding us for being decent human beings. Who knew?
So, instead of seeing how this season drains us, let’s look at how we can use this season to enrich us, and our community.
