Millburn-Short Hills Magazine Spring 2018 | Page 60

destresser
Give More,
Stress Less
Volunteering your skill set is good for your health
WRITTEN BY CINDY SCHWEICH HANDLER
V
olunteering at soup
kitchens and donat-
ing to clothing drives
are great ways to aid
those in need. But
recent studies show
that when you aid others, you help
yourself, too. In a national survey
of 3,351 adults commissioned by
United Healthcare, an overwhelming
majority of respondents said they felt
mentally and physically better after
donating their time and effort on
behalf of others. Most said that their
moods improved, they experienced
a greater sense of purpose, and felt
more control over their health; over
three-quarters of those surveyed said
that helping others lowered their
stress levels.
These health benefits are real, says
Dr. Diego Coira, chair of psychiatry
and medical director of integrated
medicine at Hackensack University
Medical Center — especially when
volunteers share the knowledge and
skills they’ve accumulated over the
years. “We all have stress, which
causes inflammation in the body,” he
says. “When you’re altruistic and you
give the skills that you’ve developed
through your education and work
experience, you gain confidence, your
self-esteem goes up and you have a
sense of community. All these factors
translate to reducing stress, having a
healthy brain, and living longer.”
Putting your expertise to use in
new places activates different areas
of the brain, says Coira. “The brain is
like a big muscle. You can be using
the same skills, but if you’re doing it
in different settings and you’re learn-
ing things, that creates new neurons,
increasing longevity. It’s the opposite
of being stressed.”
Though adding another activity to
an already busy schedule might sound
stressful in itself, an experiment
highlighted in the Harvard Business
Review found that participants who
were given tasks that helped others
felt that they had more time at the
end of the day than those who were
given busy work, or even allowed to
leave early.
Corporations have been tapping
into this win-win practice for some
time now, with over half offering
programs that channel their employ-
ees’ talents to nonprofits. In New
Jersey, The Robert Wood Johnson
Foundation offers non-profits free
access to Catchafire.org, a virtual
platform that connects volunteers
with worthy projects; the Bristol-