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Speaker 1: Welcome to wellness on Mass. I'm not going to pull

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Speaker 1: sapphire and this is your wamily Rundown. I hope everyone

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Speaker 1: had a wonderful Thanksgiving. I know I certainly did. It

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Speaker 1: was a little bit more low key than usual. In fact,

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Speaker 1: this was my first Thanksgiving where I didn't make my

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Speaker 1: own turkey because our kitchen is under construction. While I

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Speaker 1: do miss the whole process, I can tell you seeing

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Speaker 1: as I worked the day before Thanksgiving and I'm here

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Speaker 1: again today after Thanksgiving, I can tell you that prepping cleanup,

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Speaker 1: I do not miss it. So I was glad to

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Speaker 1: kind of give that to someone else this year. Now,

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Speaker 1: Thanksgiving is supposed to be the season of gratitude, you know,

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Speaker 1: full tables, lots of food, loud families, But the reality

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Speaker 1: is it's a lot less picture perfect for some. And

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Speaker 1: in fact, according to the US Surgeon General, over half

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Speaker 1: of American adults report feeling lonely on a regular basis,

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Speaker 1: and this only gets worse throughout the holiday season. Half

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Speaker 1: of adults. That means what, Whether you're sitting at a

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Speaker 1: crowded table or eating reheated leftovers, loneliness can show up

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Speaker 1: in surprising ways. And I know we joke about that

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Speaker 1: feeling of fomo fear of missing out, but that feeling

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Speaker 1: that the world is passing you by is real and

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Speaker 1: it's not just a feelings conversation. Loneliness affects our biology.

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Speaker 1: Chronic loneliness actually increases our stress hormones, which can worsen inflammation,

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Speaker 1: impact cardiovascular health. And yes, it even disrupts our dopamine pathways.

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Speaker 1: You know, those feel good pathways, the same pathways responsible

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Speaker 1: for motivation, pleasure, and reward. In other words, loneliness literally

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Speaker 1: drains your brain's natural feel good chemistry. But here's the

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Speaker 1: good news, connection can restore it. Dopamine isn't just boosted

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Speaker 1: by big, dramatic life events. It responds to small, intentional

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Speaker 1: moments of meaning. So for this Thanksgiving week, I want

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Speaker 1: to share are three simple and of course science backed

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Speaker 1: ways you can reduce loneliness in yourself and by the way,

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Speaker 1: you can help others do the same. So let's not

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Speaker 1: wait until the actual holiday to reach out to people

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Speaker 1: Thanksgiving as past us, we don't have to wait until

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Speaker 1: Hanukkah or Christmas to reach out to someone. Why don't

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Speaker 1: you just shoot them a text today? Yeah, right now?

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Speaker 1: To someone you haven't talked to in a while, A

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Speaker 1: simple hey, thinking about you this week? That's enough. Studies

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Speaker 1: show that unexpected outreach creates a bigger dopamine boost than

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Speaker 1: interactions someone anticipates. On Christmas Day, you expect the random

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Speaker 1: text messages from your friend from high school, Hey, Merry Christmas,

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Speaker 1: but you don't expect it today. It's the element of

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Speaker 1: surprise that can actually light up the brain's reward center.

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Speaker 1: And guess what, Not only does it light up their

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Speaker 1: reward center for receiving that text message, it boosts your

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Speaker 1: dopamine too, because giving connection is just as powerful as

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Speaker 1: receiving connection. Now let's talk about my number two. Let's

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Speaker 1: create a micro tradition. Not everyone has a big family table,

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Speaker 1: not everybody wants one, but everyone can have a tradition,

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Speaker 1: even a tiny one. Maybe it's a morning gratitude walk,

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Speaker 1: a favorite recipe, writing down one thing you're proud of

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Speaker 1: this year, or inviting a neighbor for coffee. Micro traditions

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Speaker 1: create predictability and meaning, and the brain loves both. They

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Speaker 1: activate the same dopamine pathways triggered by long term goal setting,

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Speaker 1: without the stress of big commitments. My family, we put

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Speaker 1: up the Christmas tree and redecorate it right after Thanksgiving.

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Speaker 1: So I'm in the hospital working all day today, but

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Speaker 1: this weekend we're certainly going to do that. So we're

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Speaker 1: going to follow that tradition and hopefully that lights up

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Speaker 1: my dopamine pathway as well as my famili's. And now

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Speaker 1: my third tip, low lift. Act of generosity. Now I'm

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Speaker 1: not talking about you know, like donating a kidney or

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Speaker 1: all of your money to someone. I meaning something small

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Speaker 1: that can shift someone else's day by like five percent.

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Speaker 1: Drop off a pie to a friend, call an older

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Speaker 1: relative who may not get a lot of visitors. Invite

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Speaker 1: someone to join you for dessert, even if they can't

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Speaker 1: stay for dinner. Acts of generosity release dopamine, serotonin, and oxytocin.

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Speaker 1: These are your brain's natural happiness. Cocktail generosity is one

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Speaker 1: of the most reliable antidotes to loneliness we have. So

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Speaker 1: if you're out shopping today and you see the police

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Speaker 1: officers or security officers or whoever who are standing guard

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Speaker 1: to keep you safe, why don't you go up to them,

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Speaker 1: say hi, say thank you, buy them a cup of coffee.

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Speaker 1: I promise you not only will that do a ton

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Speaker 1: for them, it'll do a ton for you too. So

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Speaker 1: as we head into the whole holiday season, let's remember

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Speaker 1: this loneliness isn't a holiday failure. It's actually just a

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Speaker 1: human experience. And if you are feeling moments of loneliness,

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Speaker 1: you're not alone. Of adults are probably feeling it too

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Speaker 1: in one way, shape or form, and connection in any

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Speaker 1: form is a powerful treatment. Reach Out to people early,

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Speaker 1: create something small and meaningful, and do one kind thing

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Speaker 1: this week that no one asked you to do. Your

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Speaker 1: brain and someone else's brain will thank you. I'm doctor

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Speaker 1: Nicole Saffire. This is Wellness Unmass, your weekly rundown. Please

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Speaker 1: listen anywhere you can get your podcasts iHeartRadio and we

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Speaker 1: will pet you next time.