The Hows and Whys of Cultivating Social Support

研究social supportshow that having one or two close and supportive friends is at least as valuable to emotional health as having a large group of friendly acquaintances or more shallow friendships. However, having social support from several supportive friends would be the best of both worlds. You probably already know if you're more comfortable with one good friend or many, but there are some good reasons to have at least a few different friends to fall back on:

• 如果您只有一个人通过困难时期支持您，如果该人无法使用，您可能会戴上那个人，或者不受支持。如果你至少有一些人依赖，那么每个人都更好。
• 你从不同类型的人那里汲取不同的好处。拥有一个联型朋友，一个知识渊博的朋友获取信息和见解以及一个同情的朋友成为一个善于倾听during tough times, for example, provides a better blend of social support than any one of these people alone could give.
• Your friends can bring out different qualities in one another that benefit all of you. For example, your outgoing friend could bring your shy empathic friend out of her shell, and the three of you could go out and party together. Plus, your friends can introduce you to more friends, giving you a greater pool of pre-screened potential friends.
• 研究表明，归属感对于情绪健康和福祉来说非常重要;例如，那些有社会支持但不觉得归属感的人更有可能遭受抑郁症。

How to Meet New People

If you’re not still in school or working for a large company with a built-in social structure and constant opportunities to meet new people, it’s still easy to build new friendships. Here are a few ways to meet new people:

• Join a Gym:If you’re not comfortable striking up a conversation with the person on the next Stairmaster, most gyms offer yoga, aerobics or even martial arts classes, which provide a more intimate setting and opportunities to meet people, perhaps finding a workout buddy.
• 参与一个爱好：If you enjoy making things with your hands, perhaps you can enroll in a community art class. If you like writing, a writer’s workshop will provide a great opportunity to improve your writing skills and get to know other writers at the same time.

• Volunteer!涉及慈善机构，你相信会给你一种做点积极帮助世界的感觉，这有一种很好的方式缓解压力本身，你会遇到别人的同样大的心灵和伟大的帮助。
• Get a Pet:您不仅会从宠物主人派生身体和情感福利，但您也可以在狗公园或宠物商店遇到别人。甚至有激情的兔子所有者暂停天！让您的“最好的朋友”帮助您与其他（人）朋友联系。
• Have a Party:If you invite all of your current friends and encourage each to bring a friend, you’ll have a pool of new people to meet. Plus, you may inspire your friends to throw their own parties, where you’ll meet even more new people.
• 微笑！This one may sound simple, but if you give off an ‘approachable vibe’, you may find that you’re striking up conversations with new people wherever you go. Not all these conversations need to lead to a new friendship, but some might, and just one warm exchange with someone new can brighten up your day (and theirs)!