How much do you rely on friends and family? Take our quiz to find out how independent you are
Are you a free spirit or do you get by with a little help from your friends? We've put together a fun quiz to help you find out.
Are you an independent person? Or do you feel more comfortable as part of a group or couple?
Are you happy to work alone or do you work best when you're flying solo?
Read on to take our fun quiz and find out how much you depend on your friends and family and discover the health benefits of friendship.
Why friendships are good for us
When our lives are so busy, it can be really hard to keep up with friends – especially if you live a long way away from them.
It can be difficult to form new friendships when you move house too and it can take a few years before you feel completely settled in your new home town.
But having friends is good for us – and can help us to live longer. A study published in 2016 in the American Cancer Society journal, Cancer, found that women who had the most social ties had lower death rates.
Friends become increasingly important to us as we get older too. Recent research by Michigan State University found that friendship was a better indicator of wellbeing than family relationships.
Loneliness can be very bad for our physical and mental health – according to a 2015 study, a lack of social contact can be as bad for you as smoking 15 cigarettes a day!
Read more related articles on wellbeing:
- How well do you handle setbacks? quiz
- 5 best apps for anxiety and panic attacks
- Do you have too much clutter? Take our quiz
7 easy ways to keep in touch with your friends
It's easy to let friendships drift, especially if you haven't seen someone for a while. Here are some tips to help you reconnect with your pals.
- Write a letter. Let's be honest, we very rarely get any exciting letters in the post these days. It's more likely to be a bill or a reminder than something from a friend. Make your friend's day by sending them a personal letter or a postcard!
- Pick up the phone. Make the time to call them for a real catch-up if you haven't seen them in a while. Sending texts is fine, but you'll feel more of a connection if you have a proper chat.
- Make a date. If you're very busy, it can be difficult to find time to see a friend when you're both free. Get into the habit of seeing each other regularly by picking something easy to do together each month – like meeting up for brunch or simply popping over for a cuppa one evening.
- If you live far apart, make a point of seeing your friend whenever you're in the area and let them know when you're coming in advance.
- Share memories. Dig out your old photos and chat about those crazy things you used to do (and the things you still do).
- Share an in-joke. Sending a friend a picture you think they'll find funny might not sound like much, but it lets them know that you're thinking of them.
- Don't make it a special occasion. Don't let your friendship drift so that you only see them on special occasions, such as weddings and Christmas get-togethers. You can catch up with them in-between the big events too.
Photo by Ariana Prestes, rawpixel.com, Seth Macey and Priscilla Du Preez on Unsplash
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