The Healing Power of Connection
“Create for your child, for yourself, for your family, for your organization, for your community, for this country, and for this world if you possibly can, a connected life.”
Those are the words of Edward M. Hallowell, M.D. and John Ratey, M.D. in their new book ADHD 2.0. As an ADHD coach, those words inspire me (and so have all the other perspectives in their book).
They reference the longest-running longitudinal study of adult development ever done. The main conclusion of this Harvard study which began in 1939 and is still underway is that “the single most important factor in predicting health, longevity, occupational success, income, leadership ability, and general happiness comes down to one four-letter word. Love!”
They like to refer to the power of positive connection as “the other vitamin C.”
Since the pandemic, which began more than a year ago, has challenged our ability to stayed connected, I thought it appropriate to share a few of the ideas that Hallowell and Ratey propose to stay connected.
- Have meals with your family
- Develop the habit of giving hellos and nods to people you don’t know
- Keep up with at least two good friends regularly
- Join some kind of group that holds meetings (even virtually) and attend those meetings
- Practice forgiveness of others and yourself (forgiveness does not mean condoning what was done)
- Go for a walk in nature
- Never worry alone
- Make a point of giving compliments
- Minimize your consumption of news if it tends to upset you or rile you up
- Take a daily inventory of gratitude
Dr. Vivek Murthy, the nineteenth Surgeon General of the United States (2014-2017), named loneliness the number one medical problem in the country. Consider reading his book, Together: The Healing Power of Connection in a Sometimes Lonely World.
Who We Can Be
We can embrace the healing power of connection.
Whether the pandemic ends soon or persists far longer than we have hoped, we need connection.