The majority of people would agree that they don’t like to fight. No matter if it’s with your partner, your boss, or your best friend, many people, around 62 percent, avoid confrontation and arguments on a daily basis, even when things are bothering them. While this may seem like a good thing, it’s actually hurting their health.
You read that right. Not all arguing is bad for your health. That’s why Dr. Nandi wants you to stop keeping things in, learn why arguing is good for you, and become your own Health Hero.
Surprising Health Benefits of Arguing
Here are five surprising health benefits and reasons to consider picking a fight when something is bothering you.
Arguing Makes You More Optimistic
You may think that fighting would make you look at the downside of things, but that’s not the case. When people engage in arguments instead of biting their tongue, they gain a sense of control and are more optimistic.
Arguing Lowers Cortisol Levels
People who avoid confrontation have significantly higher levels of cortisol, aka the stress hormone, and it lingers longer in their system than those who aren’t afraid of a verbal battle. These people have more difficulty staying calm, are more prone to aging, and are even at a higher risk for certain types of cancers.
Arguing Stops Resentments Toward Your Partner
When you refuse to talk about what another person has done that’s bothered you, resentments are likely to form as well as a host of other negative emotions. You start to feel anger and frustration, neither of which are good for your health.
Arguing Lessens Aches and Pains
When there is an unresolved tension between you and another person, it can show up as aches and pains in your physical body. Following a situation where you may not have expressed your anger but chose to “stuff it”, you’re more likely to experience physical symptoms, such as nausea and aches and pains, than if you’d just dealt with the problem and moved on.
Arguing Lengthens Your Lifespan
Yes, arguing can make you live longer. Married couples who avoided arguments with one another died earlier than those who dealt with disagreements in real time and engaged in fair fights.
While you may feel uncomfortable being confrontational at first, you need to do so, if only to improve your health. Stress is one of the nation’s worst health epidemics and keeping things bottled up only increases it; doing what you can to lower stress makes you a Health Hero.
Partha’s Prescription
How to argue your way to good health
- While arguing is good for you, it’s important to fight fair and not disrespect the person or their opinions or say hurtful things.
- Practice makes perfect. Understand and learn from every disagreement. You will learn the right way to effectively argue with your partner or spouse. Communicating your feelings improves both the relationship and conflict resolution in the future.
- Part of engaging in a successful argument involves listening to what the other person has to say; remember it’s an argument, not a blame game.
- Don’t be afraid to say you’re sorry, apologies go a long way in an argument, and being sorry doesn’t always mean you’re wrong.
Sign Up to join our growing Health Hero community and have the latest health and wellness research and topics delivered to your inbox. For daily updates, live chats, inspiration, community, and more, follow us on Facebook. When you refuse to talk about what another person has done that’s bothered you, resentments are likely to form as well as a host of other negative emotions. You start to feel anger and frustration, neither of which are good for your health.
