For ages, the habit of reading has been associated with wisdom, education, and studiousness, but little did we realize until only recently that reading can also help in keeping people mentally fit. If that piqued your interest, then go through the following points to understand what exactly we are talking about here.
Stress-Buster
If we were to take our facts from a study conducted by the University of Sussex, then regular reading can de-stress people by as much as 68%. In fact, it outperformed other more popular habits for busting stress, such as listening to music or mild forms of exercise like walking and jogging. It turns out that sitting down with a novel from your favorite writer at the end of a stressful workday is more beneficial than anything else that you could possibly do.
Emotional Intelligence
One of the most prominent benefits of reading fiction is that it enables you to become more empathetic towards the people around you, alongside increasing your general emotional intelligence. Studies show that children who were exposed to the habit of reading early on and adopted it grew up with a better understanding of the world and people around them.
Reading Can Help You Heal
Most of us have problems from our past that trouble us inside, even decades later. As any avid reader will tell you, it isn’t uncommon to come across a fictional or historical character who is facing or has faced something similar to what happened to you all those years ago. To read about how that character deals with the problem can totally change your point of view and the psychological effect of the incident. Now, this does have the potential to go sideways at times as well, but in any case, going through such a reading experience is often therapeutic for the mind.
Boosted Memory and Intelligence
There’s a reason why reading has been considered to be an exercise for the brain for centuries, and as it turns out, people were right. Just like physical exercise causes the muscles to become stronger, our memory and intelligence are boosted when we read on a regular basis. You cannot read without having focus and remembering details, so it comes automatically. Additionally, reading exposes us to new ideas and concepts all the time, which further broadens and evolves our thinking processes.
Cure for Sleep Disorders
We usually find it hard to sleep because we are too stressed or high-strung and since books help us relax, it has been found that reading is an effective cure for insomnia on a lot of occasions. In fact, some light reading before going to sleep is an age-old, tried and tested sleeping ritual for a lot of successful and busy people around the world.
Most of us have experienced how much of an anti-depressant the right book can be, and those that haven’t, need to try it out. A good book is like a portal into another dimension, so reading is basically you looking through that portal and discovering what’s on the other side. It’s hard not to be excited and feel good about something like that really!
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I love to read, just wish I had more time to do it. But it works wonders for helping me sleep.
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Absolutely, it really helps me wind down!
I used to read regularly but have fallen out of the habit in recent years. I’m trying to get back into it a bit.
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Takes a bit of getting used to!
This is really interesting, I think I knew all of these things but hadn’t really put the pieces together. It’s interesting what you say about empathy, it’s absolutely true.
Glad you liked this post 🙂
I definitely think reading has helped me sleep better. I always have a good sleep after reading a few pages.
Us too!
I love reading, always have, but I just don’t seem to find much time for it at the moment. When I do, the problem is that I read then fall asleep! I need to make more time for it for all the reasons you listed (and to justify buying more books too! :D)
Worth having a pile of new books on your bedside table to keep you motivated!
This is very interesting – I love to read and I do think it makes me feel better in myself. I love a good book.
Us too!
Reading has 100% helped with my mental health! Blogging has too! x
That’s wonderful!
I think I need to swap my phone for a good book at night, I’m forever on it and I think it keeps me awake for longer. Thanks for sharing this post! X
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Absolutely, I think we’re all guilty of that!
Exactly for all those reasons i want to read more this year. Haha fiction is my favourite!