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Get Healthy in 2008 - Try these Friendship Exercises

This is the time of year when we sit back and make our New Year's resolutions. Financial and physical health likely top the list of your New Year's resolutions. And if they do, you probably already have a financial plan and a resolution to exercise more and eat better. But one area we should add to our list as a vital factor in our overall well-being is friendship.

Studies show that people with strong relationships and social networks are happier, healthier and more successful. In fact, research by the Gallup Organization indicates that friendship between spouses accounts for 70 percent of happiness in a marriage, and camaraderie at work significantly affects job satisfaction.

"Any plan to improve your health in 2008 should include some work on relationships," says USA Weekend columnist and relationship expert Dennie Hughes. "Strong friendships are as important to our health as eating right, getting enough sleep and exercising regularly."

Hughes offers the following advice for building your relationship health in the New Year:

Know Your Friends' Roles

Like the song says: 'Get by with a little help from your friends'. "But don't expect all your needs to be fulfilled by one very best bud. If you're like most people, you have multiple friends who serve different roles in your life-from confidante to confidence builder, cheerleader to collaborator. It's perfectly OK to compartmentalize in this way," Hughes says. "Depending on one friend to be everything puts a lot of pressure on that person," she adds. "Look at a friendship for what it is. Know that person's role in your life and maintain the friendship at the level that you're both comfortable with."

Stay in Touch

"The mental and emotional boost from interacting with friends is powerful. Staying in touch with an old friend and talking about "back in the day" escapades can remind you that there is more to you than just a soccer mom. Talking with a new friend who you don't share a history with gives you a great perspective on how others see you now and the opportunity to change if you don't like the feedback," Hughes notes.

"Just be sure the friends you choose to keep are as willing as you are to be a positive influence in some aspect: according to a new study published in the Annals of Behavioral Medicine, friends who depend on you to be there for them but don't give back supportive energy when you need them can cause a 44 percent greater spike in your blood pressure!"

It's healthy to connect with friends regularly, both old and new, to learn what they're up to and share what's going on with you today. As a matter of fact, according to the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, connecting with someone from the past you haven't spoken to in ages-or with someone you just met-offers great mood-lifting potential.

Reach out

But success in friendship health requires simple ways for friends to keep up with each other. Websites like Classmates.com make it easier to stay up-to-date with friends. Creating a free membership enables you to easily update people on what you've been doing, and find friends not only from high school, but also college, work and military affiliations. There are more than 50 million members, so you are likely to find somebody to get in touch with.

Finally, you can extend your network of friends and strengthen bonds with current friends by trying to get to know your friends' friends. "I like to host a 'meet my friends party'," Hughes says. Invite your friends to a party and ask them to bring along some of their friends whom you don't already know. Not only do you expand your social network with people you are likely to already have something in common with—your friend's friends—it's also interesting to see your friends through someone else's eyes.

So have a very happy and prosperous New Year and be sure to keep all of your New Year's resolutions!