According to a recent survey conducted by Champneys Health Spa, it turns out that it’s not your other half who understands you the most. It’s your best friend who fills that role when you need someone to talk to.
In fact, more than half of the 1,500 married women who were a part of the survey answered that they discussed their problems with their best friends first, not their husbands.
The women were also more likely to select a best friend to have fun with rather than a spouse.
Is this good news for best friends of lousy news for marriages? Do men feel the same way about their friends? We have so many questions!
Friends are good for your mental health
You can talk about anything with a best friend without fear of judgment. It also helps that they can see things from your perspective.
They can be easier to talk to, supportive, and are on your side. When you really need to vent, they will understand why, and they won’t take it personally. Marriages aren’t always as simple as that. They can get downright complex sometimes.
There are also shared interests with a best friend that your husband may not be as likely to indulge in with you.
Who else are you going to go shopping with? Who else will go to hot yoga with you because they also suddenly feel the urge to fit into the clothes you both saw on that shopping trip?
Who else will be there to unconditionally offer support and go along for the ride when you decide to change your diet, your hair, your career, or your life?
There are also some things that are just easier to talk about with another woman, and they are more likely to lend a sympathetic ear.
The survey found that money problems, health, sex, body image issues, and other subjects are simply easier for married women to bring up with a female friend. Some things can get awkward really quickly when discussed with the opposite sex.
There is a level of understanding
You have shared experiences and conversations, movies and television that you have both seen, friends and enemies that you both know, and some of the same wants and worries in life.
When you need good advice that comes from a place of understanding, that is who you want to go to. You want it to be someone who can see life from your viewpoint and will know what decision is likely to be the best one for you and your path.
Best friends are also just easier to be yourself around. Being allowed to be yourself helps to boost confidence levels. That really is good for your emotional well being.
We all need a boost sometimes so we can be our best, and that’s what best friends are all about.
They also increase the value of life
Another study tried to put a price tag on friendship. While it would be hard to put an actual price on our friendships (they are priceless), British researchers were up to the challenge. They discovered that:
“An increase in the level of social involvements is worth up to an extra £85,000 ($108,000) a year in terms of life satisfaction.”
That’s a lot.
Hang onto your BFF.
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