A Surprising Way To Improve Our Mental Health
Hey, you fabulous peeps, and welcome to 2025! The good news is that we are on the green side of the grass, even if it is currently tending toward brown-ish. We are alive and we are living in interesting times.
Instead of wishing people only “the best” in 2025, I’m wishing them a “fully-lived” year. That’s one in which we experience the full range of human emotions, we don’t resist what is, and we aim to live in the flow of life.
In that spirit, I’m taking inspiration from this quote, which I read recently:
You don’t always need a plan. Sometimes you just need to breathe, trust, let go and see what happens.
--Mandy Hale
In today’s post, we’re looking at the benefits of volunteer service, including its ability to improve our mental health. More on that momentarily, but first…
Today’s Inspiration: We all need to see the good that is constantly happening in our world, so we have a round-up of inspiring stories from the KarunaNews website. The links take you to a short summary and offer the option to read the entire story.
The Small Town That Teamed Up To Take In Two Families
Seafarers Docked in Vancouver Get Some Christmas Gift Bags
World’s Largest Volunteer Network Offers Over 39,000 Opportunities
B.C. Children Who Are Brightening The Season For Those In Need
Today’s Probing Question: How does serving others help us?
“According to new research, people become happier over time after they start volunteering,” says the Greater Good Science Center in this article.
It’s counterintuitive that we benefit when we seek to serve others through volunteer work. And yet research is showing that those who volunteered at least once a month reported better mental health than participants who volunteered infrequently or not at all.
How does this work? It seems that volunteering is by its very nature rewarding – we humans feel good when we help others. It also boosts our sense of connectedness to others and as a friend of mine used to say, “We’re wired for connection.” We just feel better when we’re nested in supportive relationships and are offering comfort to others.
There are other practical benefits of volunteering like gaining new experience and we benefit from that as well. But the simplest, and most profound, benefit is in reconnecting with others through a desire to be of service.
I’ve shared previously about how I got involved with an organization that seeks to end homelessness. The work I’ve done there is among the most meaningful work of my entire life. I experienced a sort of crisis of meaning in my life that was only solved through opening to service and allowing my life to become about something greater than myself.
Take Action:
Consider the ways that you are already in service in your family and/or community. Take a few minutes to reflect on some meaningful moments you’ve had through your volunteer service. How has this experience changed you?
If you’re itching for a volunteer opportunity and live in the Denver Metro Area, you might consider signing up to support the Point-In-Time Count on January 27-28. This is a once-a-year count of people experiencing homelessness that supports the provision of services to this community. The Jefferson County registration page is HERE.
I would love to hear your comments about how your experiences volunteering have impacted your personal wellbeing and improved your community.
Colleen Osborne is a ‘Conscious Life Creation’ Coach who lives in Wheat Ridge, Colorado. She is on a mission to Level Up, both herself and the human species. Learn more about her work HERE.
In giving, we receive so much love, it's a two way street. I love volunteering in nature and with my spiritual path!