Studies have shown that our DNA drives us to carry out acts of compassion for the greater good of our species. There’s evidence indicating that infants show a preference for people they perceive as helpful, and other research suggest compassion is a motivator of kindness among toddlers as young as 2 years old. It turns out that those of us who offer -- and receive -- more compassion reap some hefty health benefits. We partnered with Dignity Health to look at a few of the ways compassion may boost your well-being.
1. You Bounce Back More Quickly
Can sniffles be subdued simply by docs who listen? When 350 12-year-olds involved in a recent study visited the doctor with cold symptoms, the kids examined by doctors who “emphasized empathy,” versus those to whom physicians gave standard care, knocked about a day off the duration of their colds, and had less severe symptoms.
2. You Feel Less Pain
Having a shorter cold after a visit to an empathetic doctor is great, but even more complex medical events can be significantly influenced by simple doses of compassion. In a classic 1964 study, surgical patients facing abdominal surgery had the procedure and recovery process explained to them by positive, attentive anesthesiologists before going into surgery; the patients ended up requesting lower amounts of pain medication throughout their recuperation. This is the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the healing power of kindness.
3. You Aren’t Perpetually Exhausted By Work
As part of a longitudinal study, employees at a long-term health care facility that was steeped in a culture of affection reported less exhaustion and absenteeism, but greater commitment, engagement and teamwork when compared to workers elsewhere. Likewise, patients in the facility reported greater quality of life and experienced fewer trips to the emergency room. News flash to you and your colleagues: compassion benefits givers and recipients alike.
4. You Keep Calm and Carry On -- Thanks To Decreased Stress
Sympathy and support, research suggests, can be contagious in stressful situations and enables us to cope better. The Journal of Experimental Social Psychology released a study in which subjects who experienced “two-way” compassion (both feeling and receiving) appeared to buffer incoming stressors more effectively, as indicated by their lower levels of blood pressure and lower reactivity levels of cortisol (the stress hormone). “Compassion for others may increase our ability to receive social support, which may lead to more adaptive profiles of stress reactivity,” the study authors wrote.
5. You Add Time To Your Life Clock
Human beings are social creatures, so establishing and maintaining connections between one another is paramount to our emotional and physical well-being. Numerous studies show that compassion helps us strengthen bonds with other people. Maybe we didn’t need science to tell us that; but here’s where it gets really interesting: In turn, these relationships generate a sense of belonging and purpose, while discouraging unhealthy behaviors, such as smoking, excessive drinking and inactivity.
6. You’re Happy -- And You Know It
A study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences revealed that on a neurological level, people experience identical amounts of pleasure when either engaging in charitable behavior or receiving a reward. The analysts observed similar activity in the brains of their subjects -- notably in the “pleasure centers,” which are excited by things like money, sex and dessert -- while those participants were both performing and receiving acts of compassion. So go ahead, bake your cake and eat it, too … just make sure you save some for others.
When we act on kindness and infuse compassion into our daily lives, a world is revealed to us that is healthier for our mind, body and spirit. Dignity Health is creating a movement in health care, by working to unleash the healing power of human kindness.