Summertime is here!
After what feels like decades of winter, warm weather and sunshine are back. Yay!
All of us could use a vitamin D boost and a lot more fun. Besides, this is the season most of us craved when we were kids. It meant school was over for a while and we were free to ride bikes, meet up with our friends at the park, and get out all that pent-up energy.
But you don’t have to be a kid to enjoy the benefits of socializing this summer. Adults need time to let loose too and in this week’s blog, I’m sharing three benefits of doing just that!
The next time you’re invited to a swim party, BBQ, or beach volleyball game, you’ll be benefitting your mind and body in ways you may not expect.
Your next adventure is waiting, so let’s get started!
Unexpected Benefit #1 — You’re strengthening and growing your brain.
When you do something new or novel — like accepting an invite to that beach volleyball game — you’re growing your brain. Literally.
Right now, your brain is a huge storage locker of everything you’ve done, felt, and experienced. New interests, activities, and experiences are the catalyst for new neural connections to form and eventually, grow into complex neural networks the more you use them.
When you think in new ways, your frontal lobe gets engaged and a whole new world of possibilities opens up. Suddenly, you receive an answer to a problem or get a brilliant idea for that project at work. Letting go of old thinking (even for a few hours) paves the way for your imagination to thrive because you’re giving attention to something new.
Dr. Joe Dispenza, a brain expert and meditation teacher, emphasizes the benefits of doing different or new activities to increase your brain’s grey matter. When you perform a new action, you’re literally making your brain mass increase. Woah.
Socializing also grows your brain, informs new perspectives, and deepens connection.
In the late 1990s, scientists discovered “mirror neurons” in monkeys, which also exist in humans. Mirror neurons fire when you perform an action or observe someone performing an action. A quick example would be a contagious smile from a stranger which automatically puts a smile on your face.
When you get active with friends and family this summer, notice how intrinsically linked your behaviors become with theirs. Connection breeds trust, resilience, and a sense of self-worth. Humans are tribal — we need connection to thrive.
And bonus! When you feel safe and secure, your brain and heart become coherent, which means you produce high-quality hormones, secrete immune-building chemicals, and raise your vibration to attract new circumstances. It’s a win-win!
p.s. If self-consciousness is keeping you from enjoying activities with family and friends this summer, watch this video from my friend and positivity inducer MJ Shaar for some simple, actionable tips! Don’t let self-consciousness steal your joy or keep you from connection.
Unexpected Benefit #2 — You’re reconnecting with your inner child.
I’ve got news for you — you’re a child at heart.
None of us really “grow up,” we simply slather on an adult wetsuit and hope for the best. If you scratch the surface of a “well-adjusted adult,” you’ll likely find a child-like spirit who is craving love, curiosity, and acceptance.
For a lot of us, childhood was interrupted too early. The pressure to “find yourself” and “choose a profession” kills our creative spirit and quite frankly, puts us in stress cycles when our brains and bodies are still developing.
This summer, reach deep down and let that kid loose! It’s nearly impossible to be serious when you’re hanging out with your favorite people! Laugh! Play! Do a prank on someone! (The thought of this is making me giggle already!).
Personally, I cannot keep it together when I’m with my two best friends. If I’m having a bad day, they know how to get my inner child smiling again.
Here’s a fun experiment: the next time you’re at a social gathering, take note of everyone’s inner child. Observe when people look playful, relaxed, and curious. Re-frame your experience from your inner child’s point of view. I bet you’ll learn a lot about yourself and what you truly want.
Unexpected Benefit #3 — You’re raising your vibration.
Don’t be fooled by your physical body — you are energy and you’re vibrating at a certain frequency.
Think of laughing with your bestie by the pool, or playing a fun game of tag with your kids. The better you feel, the higher you vibrate.
I’m gonna repeat that because it’s important: THE BETTER YOU FEEL, THE HIGHER YOU VIBRATE.
And the higher you vibrate, the more your physical circumstances will shift for the better.
Everything in this universe is energy, light, frequency, and vibration. Energy “talks” to itself and like attracts like.
Connecting with family and friends this summer (hopefully) means laughter, lightness, and love. All these states of being vibrate higher than sadness, anger, or fear. When you vibrate higher (or at a faster frequency), you attract different circumstances into your reality.
Your brain is an electromagnetic field of information. In fact, your pineal gland has crystals in it that get activated by higher frequencies of energy. These crystals form a charge in your brain, which communicates with the vast quantum field of information. This field responds to your frequency by matching it — meaning, you start attracting different opportunities, ideas, and ways of thinking.
The quantum field always says, “Yes.” It loves you that much. It denies you nothing.
Knowing this, you’ll want to keep your thoughts and frequency in tip-top shape!
As you get active this summer, remember to send out the vibration you want to receive back. This goes for your relationships, too! Remember that old phrase, “Treat people as you’d like to be treated?” The same goes for the universe. Send out what you’d like to receive back. It’s truly that simple.
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