Why Going on a Weekend Away with Friends is Good for Your Health.

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The Story in 100 Words

There’s an overwhelming body of research that suggests friends are good for our health. They can help us to reduce stress, improve self-confidence and even live for longer! Therefore, a holiday with your closest friends can be a great idea when you take a break from work. However, not all friends are made equal, and you need to strike a balance to avoid any negative consequences for your wellbeing whilst abroad.

Travellers should plan ahead to get as many health benefits from a holiday with friends as possible. They should make sure to include activities that work for everybody within the friendship group as well as organising essentials such as sun cream, travel insurance, and the correct travel vaccinations.

The Story in 500 Words

Research suggests friends are good for our health as you can build strong relationships with them. They can help us to reduce stress, improve self-confidence and even live for longer! By taking a trip away with your friends, you can combine the health benefits of taking a break from work with those provided by your friendship group.

But before you rush off to book your flights, it’s worth reviewing the science behind why holidays with friends are beneficial as well as remembering why striking a balance is important.

Health Benefits Provided By Friends

Research has shown that those who have stronger social relationships had a 50% increased likelihood of survival than those with weak social relationships. Another study equated the health risk attached to an absence of social connections with that of smoking 15 cigarettes a day. But what other benefits can friends provide us with?

Improved Self-Confidence

Friends are there to cheer your successes and commiserate when things don’t quite go according to plan. They can also help you to gain perspectives by providing different viewpoints. Those within friendship groups also drive each other forward and support each other’s efforts to grow and develop, improving self confidence.

Reduced Stress Levels

Increased Happiness

The old saying “you are who you surround yourself with” rings just as true today as it ever has done. A study of nearly 5,000 adults has supported this thesis. It demonstrated that happiness appears to spread not just within happy social groups but to all their contacts as well.

Potential Downsides to Going Away with Your Friends?

Whilst it’s true that a well-planned holiday with friends can be extremely beneficial for you, there are some caveats that you need to watch out for to make sure your trip has a positive rather than a negative effect on your health.

Raised Stress Levels

Whilst you may be going on holiday with a group of friends, it may be the case that you don’t necessarily get on with every single member of your travelling party. Some of those amongst your group you might count as a so-called “toxic friend”. Recent studies support the thesis that bad friends can have a negative impact on our health.

Overindulgence

Whether that’s drinking alcohol to excess, smoking cigarettes or substance abuse. Constant exposure to a friend’s behaviour both normalises it and increases the chance of you picking it up yourself. One study illustrated this point by reporting participants were 171% more likely to become obese if their close friend had already been measured as clinically obese.

How to Prepare for a Holiday with Friends?

Aside from formulating plans around how you want to spend your holiday, you need to take the necessary precautions to avoid incurring any unwanted consequences of what should be a fun break. If you’re heading somewhere warm and sunny then you need to pack essentials such as sun cream, and if you’re heading somewhere tropical you may want to bring some insect repellent as mosquitoes or even malaria may be prevalent.

With regards to your travel health, there are two separate matters you need to take care of. The first of those is travel insurance. The second is getting the right travel vaccines. You should check what you need before travelling to your destination as far ahead of your departure as possible.

A Weekend Away with Friends Can Provide Health Benefits

Sometimes there’s nothing better than getting together with a bunch of friends and heading somewhere warm and sunny to forget about the pressures of life for a weekend. However, you should plan how you want to spend the holiday to mitigate any possible negative side effects.

Finally, you need to make sure you have everything you need when travelling. Travel insurance and travel vaccines should top your list, particularly if you’re travelling to an exotic location. At DocHQ, we can help you get travel ready with our travel vaccination checker.

The Full Blog

There’s an overwhelming body of research that suggests friends are good for our health. They can help us to reduce stress, improve self-confidence and even live for longer!¹ By taking a trip away with your friends, you can combine the health benefits of taking a break from work with those provided by your friendship group.

But before you rush off to book your flights, it’s worth reviewing the science behind why holidays with friends are beneficial as well as remembering why striking a balance is important to avoid any potential negative consequences.

Why Holidays with Friends Have Such a Positive Impact on Health

Whilst the health benefits of taking a relaxing break are well-known, less is understood about the specific positive aspects linked to going away with your friends. However, an increasing body of research points to the positive impact that friendships can have on our health.

With that in mind, here are some of the health benefits you can hope to gain from a jaunt with your close friends.

Strengthen Relationships and Bonds

Socialising is one of the most fundamental aspects of human behaviour. We are social beings by nature, which stems from our ancient ancestors congregating in tribes. This is part of the reason why isolation and loneliness can have such a negative effect on our mental health.

By going away together with your friends, it’s a chance to spend quality time with them, strengthening bonds and reaping the positive associated social impacts. Strong friendships are not only good for your mental health, they are advantageous for your physical health too. Research has shown that those who have stronger social relationships had a 50% increased likelihood of survival than those with weak social relationships.² Another study equated the health risk attached to an absence of social connections with that of smoking 15 cigarettes a day.³

Improve Your Self-Confidence

All of us lack self confidence or worry from time to time. Insecurities about how we look, how we dress, how we perform at work or how others perceive us are all common amongst working professionals. However, our friendships can have a deeply positive impact on our self-confidence levels.

Friends are there to cheer your successes and commiserate when things don’t quite go according to plan. They can also help you to gain perspective by providing different viewpoints. Those within friendship groups also drive each other forward and support each other’s efforts to grow and develop.⁴ By spending time within your friendship group on holiday, you can return feeling more confident about conquering any challenges you may be facing at work or at home.

Reduce Your Stress Levels

Holidays on their own can have a stress-relieving effect. However, the presence of friends can emolliate stress levels further still, thanks to the positive influence friends have on each other. Studies carried out on what is known as the “Stress Buffering Model” have shown that the people we surround ourselves with have a profound influence on our bodies’ physiological responses to acute or chronic stress.⁵

By taking a holiday away with friends, you give yourself the chance to properly let your hair down, confide and unload problems with close friends, and receive the emotional support you might need when suffering from stress. These scenarios are examples of our friends acting as a social “buffer” against the harmful effects of stress.

Improve Your Cardiovascular and Immune Systems

As mentioned, there’s an increasing amount of evidence to suggest that our quality of friendships has a direct impact on our physical health. This is particularly the case when it comes to the cardiovascular and immune systems. One study found that a strong social support group has a positive effect on both the cardiovascular and neuroendocrine systems, as well as the immune system’s inflammatory response mechanisms.⁶

This is due, in part, to the fact that adverse health events within the cardiovascular and immune systems are often stimulated by negative emotions and responses to stressful experiences. By spending time enjoying the companionship of your friends in a relaxing environment, you’ll not only improve your mood and self-esteem, you’ll also be able to reap the rewards of the improvements made to the key biological systems within your body.

Become Happier

The old saying “you are who you surround yourself with” rings just as true today as it ever has done. And as it turns out, happiness is catching. If you are surrounded with people you consider to be positive and happy, then they are likely to make you happier as their happiness rubs off on you.

A study of nearly 5,000 adults has supported this thesis. It demonstrated that people tend to cluster into either happy or unhappy groups. For the happy groups, researchers noticed that happiness appears to spread not just within happy social groups but to their contacts as well.⁷

However, whilst there are a whole host of health benefits attached to holidaying with friends, there is the potential for some negative consequences if scenarios are not handled properly. But what exactly are the potential issues to look out for? Is holidaying with your friends ever a bad idea?

What Are the Potential Downsides to Going Away with Your Friends?

After digesting the scientific evidence we’ve just presented to you, you could be forgiven for thinking that going on a trip away with your friends is one of the best things you can do for both your mental and physical wellbeing.

Toxic Friends Can Raise Stress Levels

Yes, that’s right. Just as good friends can help us to lower our stress levels, poor friends can have the opposite effect, increasing the secretion of cortisol (the human stress hormone) to dangerous levels.

Whilst you may be going on holiday with a group of friends, it may be the case that you don’t necessarily get on with every single member of your travelling party. Some of those amongst your group you might count as a “toxic friend”. An example of a toxic friend is someone who’s in constant competition with you, often trying to change you, constantly arguing with your points, or expecting too much from you.

A recent study carried out by the University of California Los Angeles seems to support the thesis that bad friends can have a negative impact on our health. Researchers found that those with negative social experiences had increased levels of proinflammatory proteins.⁸The presence of these proteins is usually a precursor to conditions such as depression, hypertension, and in some instances diabetes and cancer.

By going away with a friend who has this effect on you, not only could your health suffer, but the relationship could break down completely as a result of spending too much time in close proximity to each other.

Friends Can Push You to Overindulge

Similar to how friends can simultaneously have the capacity to have a good and bad influence on your stress levels, they also have the ability to sway you into picking up both good and bad habits. Just as attempts to improve fitness and diet regimens are more likely to succeed if you undertake them with a buddy, friends with less than useful habits can tip you into joining them.

Whether that’s drinking alcohol to excess, smoking cigarettes or substance abuse. Constant exposure to a friend’s behaviour both normalises it and increases the chance of you picking it up yourself. This phenomenon was measured by scientists in a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine. During the course of the study, researchers found that participants were 171% more likely to become obese if their close friend had already been measured as clinically obese.⁹ Demonstrating that bad habits can spread just as easily as good habits.

If you’re travelling as a group of friends, it may be a wise move to distance yourself from those individuals who peer pressure you into activities that you don’t want to become habitual. In an ideal situation, you are well-served to associate yourself with friends who you wish to emulate or reciprocate with.

How Do You Make Sure That You Have a Good Holiday?

When it comes to having a great weekend (or longer) away with your friends it’s all about striking a balance that works for you. It’s important to remember that taking a break from work is beneficial for both your mental and physical health. If a trip is causing you added stress or anxiety before you’ve even set off, then it may be wise to reconsider or devise a strategy that ensures you get the most out of your holiday without incurring any negative side effects.

Holidays are about having fun, so think about activities that are going to promote harmony within the group. Larger groups of individuals may not all get along individually, however there are usually events that everyone can agree that they would enjoy. Focus on spending the most time with friends who make you happy, and limit your time with those you don’t always see eye-to-eye with.

Although you may be going on holiday with a group of friends, remember that you are there to reap the personal benefits of a holiday too. For instance, if you are in desperate need of some serious R & R, then make sure to pencil in some time to do exactly that. Whether that’s accomplished by taking an afternoon to relax by the pool, or by taking an evening to aimlessly stroll on the beach, don’t be afraid to pencil in a few moments for yourself.

What Do You Need to Do to Prepare for a Holiday with Friends?

Aside from formulating plans around how you want to spend your holiday, you need to take the necessary precautions to avoid incurring any unwanted consequences of what should be a fun break.

If you’re heading somewhere warm and sunny then you need to pack essentials such as sun cream. Sunburn can ruin a holiday, particularly if you’re only going for a long weekend. Likewise, if you’re heading somewhere tropical you may want to bring some insect repellent to lower the chance of itchy bites popping up all over your body.

With regards to your travel health, there are two separate matters you need to take care of. The first of those is travel insurance. 10 million British holidaymakers travelled without proper cover last year.¹⁰ Many of those who travelled without insurance now face medical bills running into the tens of thousands of pounds for emergency treatment they received whilst abroad. Given how affordable travel insurance is, it makes no sense to take the financial risk.

Next on your agenda should be travel vaccines. On average, 6 out of 10 travellers shun the vital injections.¹¹ This is despite the fact that many of the required injections are available for free with the NHS. You should check what you need before travelling to your destination as far ahead of your departure as possible you may require yellow fever or anti-malarials dependent upon your destination. Most jabs take a least 14 days before they become effective, leaving it too late could mean you could arrive at your destination unvaccinated and susceptible to disease.

A Weekend Away with Friends Can Provide Just the Tonic You Need… When Planned Effectively

Sometimes there’s nothing better than getting together with a bunch of friends and heading somewhere warm and sunny to forget about the pressures of life for a weekend. It’s a chance to strengthen the bonds between you and others within your friendship group, lifting your mood and self-esteem whilst lowering your stress levels.

However, you should take the time to plan how you want to balance the holiday. Does a member of your group always peer pressure you into things you don’t want to do? Do you find it difficult to get on with some friends to you feel complain too much? Whatever the minor issues are, it’s wise to put plans in place to mitigate any possible negative side effects incurred by spending too much time with certain individuals.

Finally, you need to make sure you have everything you need to ensure your safety when travelling. Travel insurance and travel vaccines should top your list, particularly if you’re travelling to an exotic location. At DocHQ , we can help you get travel ready with our travel vaccination checker.

All you have to do is enter your location and dates of travel, and our browser-based tool will do the rest. Not only will our checker tell you what you need and when you need it by, we can also find your nearest vaccination centre and organise an appointment for you.

So if you want to ensure you’ve got everything you need to enjoy a happy and healthy holiday, make sure to use the DocHQ vaccination checker now.

Maybe a holiday with friends could involve a trip to Jerusalem, backpacking or even a cruise? When you have booked that holiday, here’s what you do next.

References

Washington Post – https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/more-and-more-research-shows-friends-are-good-for-your-health/2016/05/26/f249e754-204d-11e6-9e7f-57890b612299_story.html
PLOS Medicine Journal – https://journals.plos.org/plosmedicine/article?id=10.1371/journal.pmed.1000316#abstract2
Perspectives on Psychological Science Journal – https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1745691614568352
Psychology Today – https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-friendship-doctor/201110/five-ways-friends-help-build-our-self-confidence
National Center for Biotechnology Information – https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4498137/
National Center for Biotechnology Information – https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16758315
Everyday Health – https://www.everydayhealth.com/emotional-health/social-support.aspx
UCLA – https://www.semel.ucla.edu/sites/default/files/publications/Feb%202012%20-%20Negative%20and%20competitive%20social%20interactions%20are%20related%20to%20heightened%20proinflammatory%20cytokine%20activity..pdf
New England Journal of Medicine – https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMsa066082#t=article
ABTA – https://www.abta.com/news/10-million-holidaymakers-travelled-abroad-without-right-cover-last-year
Columbus Direct – https://www.express.co.uk/life-style/health/797003/travel-vaccinations-holiday-death-tropical-diseases

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Why Going on a Weekend Away with Friends is Good for Your Health. Posted on January 29, 2020January 29, 2020