Being kind to someone is more than just a nice gesture. There is a more impactful practice that benefits both those that are on the receiving and giving ends. There is a social element to being kind. Kindness is intentional, and can help build relationships with everyone around you, through a deeper interaction.
A growing body of research indicates that intentional kindness is a critical component of physical and mental health, as well as economic wellbeing. Unkind places that are argumentative and hostile can become toxic and trigger our flight-or-fight responses. Those environments cause our bodies to tense up and cortisol to build. Your capillaries and veins will constrict, causing our hearts to pump harder and faster. That is not a physically healthy environment.
On the flip side, when we are around people who treat us with kindness, and we ourselves treat others with kindness, we produce oxytocin. This hormone helps improve everything from heart function to breathing. K-State Extension offers a fact sheet entitled, “Kindness Matters,” that can be downloaded online for free, or stop by one of our offices and we can print one for you. This helpful publication can aid all environments, like work, school, or at home, understand and implement more intentional acts of kindness.
We hope that kindness comes naturally to us all, but it can be a planned thing, as well. You could start by scheduling acts of kindness on your calendar, or a reminder on your phone.
They don’t have to be large acts, but simple ones like taking out the office trash or grabbing coffee for a colleague. Even a small stone in a pond can send ripples across the larger body of water. You never know, it may end up becoming a habit worth keeping.
Information comes from Kansas State University Community Health Specialist, Elaine Johannes.
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