New Orleans and the Importance of Connection

​I traveled to New Orleans a few weeks ago. I knew I had truly arrived when our Lyft driver said "How ya doing, Miss Bonnie?" I had made a lunch reservation and when we arrived I was greeted with "Welcome, Miss Bonnie." On a shuttle bus to Mardi Gras World the driver asked if this was my first time in New Orleans. When I said it was my second, he replied "Welcome Home."
 
New Orleans is a great place to travel to. The food, music, warm weather, welcoming people make it so special. Being there feels like getting a big hug.
 
But I want to tap into something deeper. The importance of social connection. Not just because it makes us feel good -- although this is important.  But because it makes us healthier.
 
Here's what the experts have to say:

• In the personal health section of the New York Times, Jane Brody has been reporting on research that loneliness can have a negative impact on health "by raising levels of stress hormones and inflammation, which in turn can increase the risk of heart disease, arthritis, Type 2 diabetes and dementia."

 

• Dr. Dhruv Khullar, a physician and researcher at Weill Cornell Medicine in New York writes "A wave of new research suggests social separation is bad for us. Individuals with less social connection have disrupted sleep patterns, altered immune systems, more inflammation and higher levels of stress hormones."

 

• And research presented at the 2017 Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association shows that "Loneliness and social isolation may represent a greater public health hazard than obesity, and their impact has been growing and will continue to grow."

 
Here is "Miss Bonnie's" take on all this:

• Know that no matter what, you are not alone. Just take a minute and breathe that in. Say it to yourself. Write it in your journal. Breathe it in with each breath.

 

• Reach out. I mean this truly. I am here for you. Send me an email. Schedule an appointment. Acupuncture can help you connect more fully with yourself. I do think it can be an antidote to loneliness. And I will be with you, listen to you, open my heart.

 

• If I'm not the right person to help you, reach out to someone who is. I know there is someone out there who will be there for you. In all the ups and downs of my life (and there have been many), there was always someone. Sometimes it was a friend, sometimes a medical professional. Sometimes it was a favorite singer/song writer, a favorite author. A movie that moved me to tears.

 

• Be expansive in your outreach. We don't always know when/where/who what we need will come from. And sometimes it arrives from unexpected quarters. Just trust that it will be there.

 

• Practice making connections when you are out in the world. Take the extra moment to say hello to your mail carrier, the wait staff at your favorite coffee shop or restaurant, the neighbor walking their dog.

 

• Join a community of like-minded folks. Take a yoga or Qi Gong class. If it's your thing, go to a house of worship. Whether you are a believer or not, the spirit is always there for you.

 
One of the reasons that I love Eastern Medicine is because of its emphasis on connection. In the 5 element/5 organ system that we use no one organ/element exists on its own. The energy of the liver feeds the heart, the heart energy feeds the spleen, the spleen energy feeds the lungs, the lung energy feeds the kidneys, the kidney energy feeds the liver. The cycle is completed and begins again.
 
As people we may feel isolated, but we never exist in true isolation.
 
With you in spirit…
 
Bonnie

​Sources:
www.nytimes.com/2017/12/11/well/mind/how-loneliness-affects-our-health.html
https://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/05/13/shaking-off-loneliness/
www.apa.org/news/press/releases/2017/08/lonely-die.aspx
www.nytimes.com/2016/12/22/upshot/how-social-isolation-is-killing-us.html

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