82:: The science of female friendships (& the ultimate friendsgiving guide!)
The #1 Predictor of Health and Happiness (Hint: It’s Not Exercise or Diet!)
What if the secret to lifelong health wasn’t about your workout routine or what’s on your plate but about who’s sitting across the table from you?
In this episode, we dive into the groundbreaking Harvard Study of Adult Development (the world’s longest-running study on happiness) and the incredible science showing that relationships are the most powerful predictor of long-term health.
You’ll learn:
- How strong friendships protect against heart disease, diabetes, and even dementia
- Why women’s health benefits especially from quality connections
- The “tend and befriend” stress response that lowers cortisol and boosts resilience
- How social fitness compares to physical fitness (spoiler: it’s surprisingly close!)
- Practical tips for building deeper, more joyful connections
Whether you’re catching up with a bestie, joining a new group, or just craving more connection, this episode is your reminder that friendship isn’t optional—it’s essential.
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The #1 predictor of a happy & healthy life: https://wellness-big-sis-the-pod.captivate.fm/episode/29-the-1-predictor-of-a-happy-healthy-life-plus-creating-cozy-fall-vibes-dating-your-friends/
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/04/opinion/riffing-banter-friendship-connection.html
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00:18- 00:22 Introduction to November's Theme: Friendships and Gratitude
00:23- 00:37 The Number One Predictor of a Happy and Healthy Life
00:38- 02:25 Importance of Relationships in Wellness
02:26- 05:21 Research Studies on Relationships and Health
05:22- 07:47 Gender Differences in Relationship Benefits
07:48- 13:38 Social Fitness vs. Physical Fitness
14:15- 20:00 The Power of Riffing Over Small Talk
20:01- 25:26 Friendsgiving Hosting Tips and Tricks
25:27- 27:08 Conclusion and Final Thoughts
Mentioned in this episode:
Transcript
for me, November is all about friendships
and gratitude and enjoying time together.
2
:So let's dive in to the number one
predictor of a happy and healthy life.
3
:And it might not be what you think it is.
4
:Welcome back to Wellness of the Pod.
5
:I'm your host, Dr.
6
:Kelsey Vic, a board certified orthopedic
doctor of physical therapy and a
7
:pelvic floor physical therapist.
8
:So every year so far, this is only year
two of the podcast, but I've done some
9
:version of this episode because I really
do think it is so important to talk about
10
:this side of wellness and what better
month to do it in than November, where
11
:we're already focusing on gratitude
and friendships and relationships.
12
:We're about to start the holidays with.
13
:American Thanksgiving and Christmas
and all of the other holidays that
14
:sort of surround this time of year.
15
:So I always like to do an episode
on this topic because as much as
16
:we talk about our musculoskeletal
system, our physiology, neuroscience.
17
:mental health, physical health, spiritual
health, all of that sort of stuff, the
18
:actual number one predictor of a happy and
healthy life has been found and researched
19
:to be the quality of your relationship.
20
:So I feel like it's very important to
chat about it because we can get so
21
:caught up in all of the biohacking and
the physical and the learning about
22
:our bodies when a lot of the time
it is that happy hour with friends.
23
:That can be more important
than your hour gym time a week.
24
:Investing not only in your physical
health but also in the quality
25
:of relationships is huge for
our overall health and wellness.
26
:So I'll link the episode that
I did last year on this exact
27
:topic so that you can refer back.
28
:But I'm gonna update the research a
little bit, present a few new studies,
29
:present a few of the older studies we
talked about last year, and just refocus
30
:and reset and just give an alternative
way of viewing health and wellness.
31
:More than just the physical, more
than just the musculoskeletal.
32
:More than just the neurological.
33
:I really wanna put all of that aside
and chat about the importance of
34
:relationships and quality relationships,
especially as it relates to our overall
35
:health, but then also our happiness.
36
:So let's get into it.
37
:We're gonna start off by presenting
a few of the studies and the research
38
:on relationships and how they relate
to different components of our health.
39
:And then at the end, I always like
to do a little bit of a Friendsgiving
40
:guide and things that I look for
when hosting Friendsgiving, or
41
:things that I like to pay attention
to when hosting Friendsgiving.
42
:So it'll be a fun little girly chat
about the importance of quality
43
:relationships and then also a little
bit of a Friendsgiving chat at the end.
44
:If you are.
45
:Going to be hosting a Friendsgiving.
46
:So one of the most popular studies
in the field of relationships is the
47
:Harvard Study of Adult Development, and
it's been going on for 85 plus years.
48
:There's been different
directors throughout its time.
49
:It started off males, now it's
starting to incorporate more females.
50
:So it's one of the longest running
studies, and it's the sort of probably
51
:number one study that is referred
to when talking about how important
52
:relationships are in our lives,
in our health and our happiness.
53
:So it's an 85 plus year study
on the top contributors of
54
:lifelong health and happiness.
55
:So they didn't really even start
off researching about relationships.
56
:That's just what has been shown through
this study is that relationships are super
57
:important and now they're actually getting
to the point where they're studying.
58
:The kids and the grandkids of
the original participants to see
59
:what is the genetic component.
60
:If someone has high quality
relationships, How does that
61
:affect generations after them?
62
:So the primary finding of
the study has been strong.
63
:Relationships are the primary predictor
of long-term health and happiness.
64
:Those with the warmest connections
towards others were less likely to develop
65
:heart disease, diabetes, arthritis, and
they had better immune system function
66
:and better recovery from sickness.
67
:Overall, they say social fitness might
be even more important than physical
68
:fitness, and I know gasp Kelsey, the
Doctor of physical therapy is saying that.
69
:But this study is one that I like
to point out because we can get
70
:so caught up in the weeds with all
of the physical that we forget.
71
:One of the most important things
that we can invest in is our
72
:relationships with others.
73
:So Dr.
74
:Robert Waldinger, the current director
of the study, says that loneliness kills,
75
:it's as powerful as smoking or alcoholism.
76
:So let that sink in a little
bit because that is a very
77
:strong statement to make.
78
:Another landmark study in this field
came from Holt and Stead in:
79
:They did a meta-analysis on social
relationships and mortality.
80
:So a meta-analysis is basically
the top tier research.
81
:It pulls together a lot of the
top quality studies and analyzes
82
:them across the board as a whole.
83
:So it's groups together,
the top studies in a field.
84
:And so overall, this pulled together
148 studies with over 308,000 people.
85
:So their findings were that people with
stronger social relationships had a 50%
86
:increased likelihood of survival compared
to those with weaker social relationships.
87
:And this was consistent across
age, sex, and health status.
88
:And this is one of the first studies
to show that quality relationships
89
:can actually help us live longer.
90
:This year specifically, I wanted
to look into how females benefit
91
:more from relationships compared
to men, or what are the differences
92
:between how females benefit from.
93
:A relationship compared to men or how
do we go about forming relationships?
94
:Are we better able to form
those deeper connections?
95
:I wanted to compare female to male
when it came to quality relationships.
96
:So for female specific, a woman's
health generally benefits more from
97
:quality relationships compared to
a man's health, but it is also more
98
:negatively impacted by social isolation.
99
:So on either sides of the extreme,
we benefit more from quality
100
:relationships, but we're also more
negatively impacted by social isolation.
101
:Women are better at providing
social support, relying on social
102
:support, and disclosing important
parts of their stories, which helps
103
:to build that social connection.
104
:So all of these are of course,
associated with friendship.
105
:High quality female friendships
specifically lead to lower blood pressure,
106
:reduced cardiovascular disease, and a
60% lower chance of premature death.
107
:quality female friendships can also
help lower cortisol levels in women who
108
:regularly engage with their close friends.
109
:Dr.
110
:Taylor out of UCLA who's one of the
primary researchers in this field, found
111
:that when faced with external stress,
women gravitate towards each other to
112
:help cope while also taking care of
others to help cope with that stress.
113
:So she called this way of handling
stress, the tend and befriend theory,
114
:or the tend and befriend way of
handling stress versus the fight or
115
:flight response that we're all very
familiar with, where women naturally
116
:want to take care of others, and
we also want to befriend others.
117
:When faced with that external stress,
118
:which I thought was interesting
because I do feel like women in general
119
:are more open with each other, more
willing to ask for guidance or help or.
120
:Sort of bond over challenges, which can
be that befriend part of the equation.
121
:But I hadn't really ever thought about
the tend part of the equation where
122
:we, when faced with stress of any
kind, we want to start to take care of
123
:others, which I feel like is a real.
124
:special thing about being a woman, I guess
that when faced with stress are, one of
125
:our immediate reactions is not to fight
or flight, but possibly to take care of
126
:others, which I think is really beautiful.
127
:So Dr.
128
:Taylor says This whole process of
tend and befriend is mediated by
129
:oxytocin release, which in turn
can help lower our cortisol levels.
130
:So that's with female
friendships specifically.
131
:But I also wanted to dive into our social
fitness versus our physical fitness.
132
:So how are our bodies, our minds,
benefiting from spending time on
133
:our relationships and improving
those quality relationships or.
134
:Investing in those quality relationships
versus our physical fitness.
135
:So what is the comparison and
contrasting nature of social
136
:fitness versus physical fitness?
137
:So from the physical fitness
standpoint, a high VO O2 max
138
:reduces mortality by 41 to 53%.
139
:And a VO two max is just, you can think
of it as a measure of our heart health.
140
:So comparing that to our social
fitness, strong social relationships.
141
:There's a 50% increased likelihood of
surviving, so it's very similar, 41
142
:to 53% if you have a high VO two max.
143
:So a high physical capacity, but
a 50% increase in the likelihood
144
:of survival with strong social
relationships or strong social fitness.
145
:So I thought that
comparison was interesting.
146
:Loneliness is associated with an
increased risk of obesity, physical
147
:inactivity, and an unhealthy diet.
148
:Obesity and social isolation combined
149
:. Leads to a greater mortality risk.
150
:So physical fitness, social
fitness, very closely connected.
151
:And if you add in isolation to the
equation, that can lead to poor
152
:physical fitness measures or statistics.
153
:And if you combine 'em together,
overall worse health for men and women.
154
:So overall quality of friendships lead
to, for both men and women, better
155
:coping, lower stressed, improved
blood pressure, and a 38% reduction in
156
:risk for dementia, and 21% reduction
in mild cognitive impairment.
157
:And I wanted to include that
statistic because I know a lot
158
:of us probably have loved ones
in our lives who struggled with.
159
:Memory loss, memory issues, and from
a very subjective standpoint, as a
160
:physical therapist, a lot of my older
patients who are super on top of it,
161
:both physically and mentally, they
have a super strong social network.
162
:They're always going out
to eat with other people.
163
:They're always, they're
busier than I am socially.
164
:They're.
165
:Going out to happy hours and
lunches and hanging out, talking
166
:on the phone with their friends.
167
:Those individuals in those later decades
of life are doing so much better compared
168
:to my patients who are socially isolated.
169
:I think the statistic is important
that your social relationships
170
:and your relationships with
others aren't only benefiting you
171
:physically, but also mentally as well.
172
:So why?
173
:How does this even work from
a physiological standpoint?
174
:Of course, I'm going to get
into the mechanism and ways
175
:that diving into your quality
relationships helps your physicality.
176
:I think it's so interesting,
but I also think the interplay
177
:between the two is interesting.
178
:Okay, So why, how does this even work?
179
:How do our social relationships and
the quality of our social relationships
180
:impact our physical health and our minds?
181
:So there's a few ways I'll go through
'em super duper quickly, but oxytocin
182
:release, reduces cortisol and our
stress response reduced inflammation.
183
:Overall, we've found reduced
inflammatory markers in those with
184
:higher quality social relationships.
185
:enhanced immunity with high quality social
relationships, which leads to an improved
186
:immune system and immune response.
187
:Overall improved health behaviors.
188
:socially connected people are more
likely to engage in healthy behaviors
189
:and avoid unhealthy behaviors.
190
:There's stress buffering, which leads
to emotional support during difficult
191
:times with high quality relationships.
192
:There's an overall sense of purpose.
193
:Relationships give us more meaning
and motivation to take care of
194
:ourselves because we feel like
other people are relying on us.
195
:There's cognitive protection, high
quality relationships maintains our
196
:mental sharpness and reduces mental
decline, and then there's better
197
:emotional regulation, meaning that
sharing our thoughts and feelings
198
:helps us to process emotions better.
199
:I know we all probably intuitively
understand this, but it's really cool
200
:to see that Not only does taking care
of our physical health actually affect
201
:us, which of course, duh, we all knew
that, but also actually investing in
202
:our social relationships and taking care
of our social relationships will also
203
:help our health and happiness long term.
204
:I don't know if any of you guys have
played the sport of paddle or padel.
205
:I feel like it's just now
making its way to the states.
206
:And I know I have a few worldwide
listeners who have probably played it
207
:before, but we are really enjoying it.
208
:But in the states it's expensive.
209
:So it's two V two.
210
:it's almost like pickleball mixed with
squash, where you play off the wall.
211
:So there's more.
212
:Involved in playing, and it's always two
on two, so you have to have four people.
213
:And we just played to celebrate one
of my good friend's birthdays, and for
214
:all four of us, it was like 130, $140
an hour, or for an hour and a half for
215
:90 minutes, which is pretty expensive.
216
:But the way that I was looking at it,
I was researching for this episode
217
:probably a few days before, And as soon
as I realized that we were going to
218
:have to be spending so much money in
order to play a sport that we enjoyed,
219
:I started thinking back to researching
for this episode and thinking, okay,
220
:not only am I investing in my physical
health with this 130, $140, I'm also
221
:investing in these social relationships
with these super good friends of ours.
222
:And it just made me smile because I was
like, yes, this is freaking expensive
223
:for 90 minutes for a sport that.
224
:Is so fun.
225
:But I don't know, just, 30, $40 a person
is outrageous for 90 minutes when you're,
226
:when pickleball can be free, when tennis
can be free, when sand volleyball, beach
227
:volleyball can be free when all of these
other sports that we do can be free, but.
228
:Investing not only in our physical
health, but it also in my mind, was
229
:investing in these social relationships
because we all enjoy paddle and we all
230
:enjoy these novel movement patterns
that we're having to learn for paddle.
231
:But it just, it was a more recent example
where my mindset had to flip to be like,
232
:okay, it's not just , , $140 for my
physical health, but it's also investing
233
:in those quality relationships, this fun
time that we're all gonna have together.
234
:So while researching for this episode,
I also came across a more recent
235
:article that I thought was super cool.
236
:It talks about the difference between
small talk and riffing And how riffing
237
:is a way to create deeper social
connection quicker with strangers.
238
:the article was written by Dr.
239
:Erica Boothby and Dr.
240
:Maya Rose Milone.
241
:And the article is titled, you're
Probably Doing Small Talk Wrong,
242
:and it talks about the difference
between small talk and riffing.
243
:So what is riffing?
244
:Riffing is playful
collaborative conversation
245
:Where two people build on each other's
ideas and a creative imaginative
246
:world, there's a few pillars.
247
:It's usually playful, collaborative,
spontaneous, and imaginative compared
248
:to small talk where it's just facts.
249
:So a few examples for a
traditional small talk.
250
:You might say something like
nice weather we're having.
251
:Yeah, it's finally warming up.
252
:I'm glad winter is over.
253
:Me too.
254
:I hate being cold.
255
:Same here.
256
:Have a good day.
257
:So you're just stating facts.
258
:And facts.
259
:Don't create that emotional
connection with a stranger as much
260
:as something like riffing does.
261
:for the riffing version,
it might go like this.
262
:Nice weather we're having, right?
263
:I feel like I'm emerging from hibernation,
like some sort of confused bear ha.
264
:Speaking of bears.
265
:I bet they're all looking around
wait, where did all the snow go?
266
:I just went to sleep.
267
:Exactly.
268
:And now they're probably having
to update the Yelp reviews.
269
:Cave was great for winter,
napping, but the neighborhood
270
:has completely changed Two stars.
271
:Oh no.
272
:And all the other woodland creatures
are probably gentrifying their
273
:territory while they were asleep.
274
:So in this case you can
see the same initial.
275
:Phrase gets a different response, and
they're both creating an imaginative,
276
:creative world between two people.
277
:So they're playing off of each other,
they're being more imaginative.
278
:They're creating, they're playing make
believe, and these are just two strangers
279
:who are building that imaginative,
playful, creative world together, which
280
:creates that deeper emotional connection.
281
:So in another example, this one's
for work, but for traditional
282
:small talk, how's work going?
283
:Busy.
284
:Lots of meetings lately.
285
:That sounds exhausting.
286
:It is.
287
:I had three meetings yesterday.
288
:Wow.
289
:That's a lot.
290
:So you can see there's not
much emotional depth there.
291
:Where riffing will go.
292
:Something like this.
293
:How's work going?
294
:I'm basically a professional
meeting attendee.
295
:At this point.
296
:I should update my LinkedIn
to meeting enthusiast.
297
:Oh, you could start a
whole consulting business.
298
:We'll attend your meetings
so you don't have to genius.
299
:I'll call it proxy participation.
300
:My tagline could be, I'll nod thoughtfully
while you get actual work done, and you
301
:could have a different service tiers.
302
:Bronze package, basic
nodding, gold package.
303
:I'll ask one insightful question.
304
:Platinum, I'll even take notes
that make everyone else feel
305
:bad about their note taking.
306
:Stop.
307
:You're gonna make me accidentally
start a real business.
308
:So again, in this work scenario,
you can see how small talk, you're
309
:just stating facts, riffing, you're
starting to play off of each other,
310
:create this imaginative world.
311
:And I realized with this article that
a lot of physical therapists that
312
:I know, some of the best physical
therapists I know, and probably
313
:some of the best service providers
that you guys know, some of the best
314
:healthcare workers that you know.
315
:Use this as a strategy to build rapport
really quickly with their patients
316
:or with whoever they're serving.
317
:I know for me.
318
:I have to be able to build trust
with patients really quickly so that
319
:they trust me with their health.
320
:And typically I lean towards humor.
321
:I lean towards asking them about
their expertise, their day,
322
:their world, and joking with them
if I get that vibe from them.
323
:So it's almost a two-way street
where you both have to be willing
324
:to be creative and imaginative and
playful and humorous in order to
325
:successfully riff with each other.
326
:But Dr.
327
:Maya and Dr.
328
:Erica Who are both more social researchers
329
:have established this way of riffing
as a way to build those deeper
330
:social connections with strangers.
331
:And I thought it was super cool because
in this season of hosting and dinner
332
:parties and Friendsgiving, I thought
thinking of that might really help to
333
:allow people, me included, feel more
comfortable at certain parties where they
334
:might not know as many people because.
335
:It can be scary walking into a room
where your friend is hosting, but she has
336
:friends from other walks of life and other
groups that you might not be a part of.
337
:And leaning on this sort of way of
creating this playful, imaginative,
338
:creative alternative reality a little
bit for that brief moment can really
339
:help open up that relationship and create
that friendship a little bit quicker
340
:than something as simple as small talk.
341
:So why does riffing work immediately
creates a shared reality that only the two
342
:involved in the conversation know about.
343
:It builds intimacy through creative
collaboration, creating something
344
:new together in real time.
345
:Through words, through conversation.
346
:It can be tied back to
something like childhood play.
347
:When we're children, we don't
necessarily go up to someone
348
:and say, Hey, how's your day?
349
:Can I play with you?
350
:You just start playing and you
just start creating together.
351
:So riffing takes it back to that childhood
play and building relationships that way.
352
:There's also more emotional engagement
where rather than just exchanging
353
:facts, you're exchanging humor and
excitement, which form deeper bonds.
354
:So the authors argue that strong
human bonds form out of playful
355
:banter more so than just shared
similarities or a shared reality.
356
:I thought this was the perfect article to
include here, just because it kind of ties
357
:in with friendships and dinner parties
and hosting and this time of year where
358
:we're just talking to a lot of different
people and focusing on relationships.
359
:Not only the relationships that we have
depth to, but also the relationships
360
:where we are forced to meet someone and
understand where they came from and build
361
:that friendship a little bit quicker.
362
:And I feel like this article presented
a different way of doing that compared
363
:to just the small talk that we all
get a little bit nervous about.
364
:Anyways,
365
:so enough with the
research, enough with the.
366
:Importance of relationships.
367
:Let's get into some of my
Friendsgiving hosting tips and
368
:tricks, or just a dinner party.
369
:Again, I know I have a lot of
international listeners and some people
370
:might not know what a Friendsgiving is.
371
:I feel like that's
presented a lot on shows.
372
:I was just watching the summer, I
turned pretty and I think she said
373
:something about a Friendsgiving
and they were like, what?
374
:So a Friendsgiving is basically, I think
of it as like a girls get together where.
375
:One of my friends will host or I'll
host, and we'll just invite a lot
376
:of girlfriends together to hang out.
377
:It's usually potluck style where
everyone will bring a dish and
378
:you'll just chat, get together.
379
:Sometimes there's conversation
starters that we have.
380
:It's just like a really warm,
cozy, girly get together.
381
:So it can be a call to Friendsgiving,
but you can also just use these
382
:tips for a dinner party as well.
383
:To get a little emotional with it.
384
:Food has always been communal.
385
:One of my favorite parts of eating
is sharing conversations with others.
386
:And as a side note, I don't actually spend
money on food unless it is a communal.
387
:Time to eat.
388
:So if I'm not going to grab lunch with a
friend or go grab dinner with a friend or
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:happy hour or have a date night with my
husband, I'm not spending money on food.
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:I will delay my meal until I get
home so that I'm not spending
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:money on food unless it's communal.
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:It's just like a silly rule that I have.
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:But I find food to be so communal
and that's just the way that my
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:family was growing up too, and the
way that my husband's family is even
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:more which has been so wonderful.
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:They were always so good about family
dinners growing up, and I've been blessed
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:to be brought into that when we were
dating back in high school, but then also
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:now where I feel like food is so communal
and it's so beautiful to be able to share
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:food from your childhood or food that
you made and you created with others.
400
:So a few tips for a general
Friendsgiving or dinner party.
401
:For setting the mood.
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:I always like candles and I'm someone
that's super sensitive with scent, so
403
:I always recommend non-toxic candles
for those of your guests who might
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:be sensitive to smells and aromas.
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:And I also think something not
super strong, so not something super
406
:spiced or super pumpkin or super.
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:Fall or winter I like a little
bit more subtle because I feel
408
:like it's not super overwhelming.
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:Plus, with the smell of all that is
going to be cooked in the kitchen, it
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:might just get a little bit overwhelming
to have a super fall spiced candle.
411
:So I say keep a fall adjacent
smell for the invite.
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:I've done text invites.
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:I've done Canva, like images
that I send over text.
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:I like to make it accessible for
people where they can go back.
415
:Sometimes with some of those invites,
like paperless posts, I can't find the
416
:exact text that it's sent through, and so
I end up having to text the host to say,
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:what time's this party, I totally forgot.
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:So I always like to have a way
for the guests to refer back to
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:what time, where the location,
address, what to bring, all of that.
420
:For the decor.
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:This is something that gets me still
If you've listened to the pod for
422
:a long time, you know that I've
struggled with this for a while.
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:I did an episode on this probably
last fall, but I hate waste and I
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:hate spending money on things that
are just gonna be thrown away.
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:So decor is really hard for me
because I know that most decor, most
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:birthday party decor, most decor in
general is going to get thrown away.
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:So I like to use decor that is usable.
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:So something like fall squash
or fall fruits, fall veggies.
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:Candles that I'll use later
on just for ambient lighting,
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:because I love using candles.
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:I like to have double bang
for my buck for decor because.
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:I just hate waste.
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:And that's something that I need to
get better at because I've tried to
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:switch my mindset to be like, you are
creating an atmosphere for other people
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:to enjoy, for other people, to build
social connection and relationships.
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:And that's beautiful
and that is not waste.
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:But if you're also like me in struggle,
sometimes I do like to look on
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:Pinterest and just get ideas for decor
that can be utilized later and won't
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:just get thrown away after the party.
440
:I've also been given like fall cloth
napkins, so I love the idea of decor
441
:that's washable in the laundry, or
that can be reused in some ways.
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:So something as simple as fall napkins,
of course, fall colored plates,
443
:things like that can really help to
elevate the decor without being waste.
444
:So since I don't typically spend too much
money on the invite, sometimes I'll write
445
:like little notes to people for their
place setting or like a fancy name card if
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:I don't have as much time to write a note.
447
:But I love handwritten notes, and I
think that's really special to have
448
:just a little handwritten note telling
the person why you're grateful for
449
:them or something you love about them.
450
:For the meal.
451
:I do typically think like a potluck is
fun, or you can have people pitch in
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:five or $10 to actually get it catered
if you'd like, if you didn't want to
453
:cook or if you didn't have a kitchen big
enough to cook everyone's meals, but.
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:I like to have people sign up for
something like a protein, a carb, a
455
:veggie, a bread, a appetizer, a dip,
maybe a cocktail plates, silver or
456
:forks, all of those sorts of things.
457
:And I think we've always done it over
text just to make it easy so people can
458
:see what other people are bringing and
think, oh, what of my dishes that I like
459
:to cook, go with what they're bringing.
460
:So that's the way we like to do it, but.
461
:I do think having a variety and
actually spelling out that variety
462
:for other people to understand.
463
:That way you're not just stuck
with like bread and potatoes
464
:and like pasta and super heavy
dishes, but you have a well-rounded
465
:variety for everyone to enjoy.
466
:And then lastly for the conversations,
I went to a Friendsgiving last
467
:year where my friend had that game.
468
:We're not really
strangers, friends version.
469
:And that was super fun.
470
:We all just picked a card and chatted
and it was just a way to break
471
:the ice for friends of your friend
that you might not know as well.
472
:So I thought that was a great idea.
473
:You could also ask people different
conversation starters I've seen this
474
:for a wedding and I actually thought
it was a really good idea having people
475
:submit a fun fact and then have everyone
guess who fun fact that is at the table.
476
:So I thought all of those were
great ideas, but I never like
477
:to have it too structured.
478
:But it is nice to have things to lean
on if things start to get a little
479
:bit more flat or silent, where.
480
:Little side conversations have
stopped and dulled a little bit,
481
:and now it's time to get the whole
group involved in a conversation.
482
:So this is a jam packed episode
of a variety of things, but it's
483
:definitely kicking off this month of
November and this month of gratitude
484
:and relationships and quality
relationships in a super fun way, I hope.
485
:But I hope you learned
a lot from this episode.
486
:Some fun things that you might not
typically think of as health and wellness,
487
:but that are true health and wellness
because something like relationships
488
:and more of the soft side of wellness
does heavily impact our overall health
489
:and happiness for the rest of our lives.
490
:So I hope you guys enjoyed this episode.
491
:I hope you have a wonderful month
of gratitude and relationships
492
:and come back to this episode.
493
:If you ever feel guilty about.
494
:Ditching the gym time for something like
a happy hour because it's those little
495
:things that are more investments in your
longevity fund, but investments into
496
:the relationship side of things versus
the physical fitness side of things.
497
:So I hope you enjoyed this episode and
I'll see you guys again on the next
498
:episode of Wellness Exists, the pod.
