ASTRIDESTELLA PHILOSOPHY~ "The reward is in the giving"

The story from the Daily Mail doesn't surprise me in the least, something I discovered for myself many years ago and more so because I worked in the caring professions. I have written much on this over the years and its something I teach in Spirit Philosophy and something many discovered centuries ago from when that proverb was written "It is better to give than to receive", here this study details scientific evidence to prove this. But there's more to it than science looking at this holistically i.e. mind, body and the most important aspect of ourselves 'spirit' following spiritual principals 'retribution and compensation for all souls. This is the basis for one of the most fundamental laws of the Universe, the one of "Cause and effect". What you do today ultimately affects tomorrow, like the ripples from a stone thrown into a pool of water, these effects of the ripples are wide reaching and you never know how far those ripples will travel and what effect they will have on the surroundings. 

When we do a kindness, the recipient more often than not will feel touched that you helped them and want to repay you or pass on the kindness. Of course there will be some who will take your kindness for granted and I like to think those that do are few and far between and we should not dislike those but instead pity them for they are younger souls who have not yet discovered what you give out you get back. All we can do is hope by showing example something will resonate within their psyche and trigger something, where they will see how the Universe works.

As I have said many, many times: "The reward is in the giving"

PLEASURES TOKEN WAS IN THE GIVING
Betrayal of trust comes in many forms
Like the love from a parent that flounders and fails
Or from family members those whom once trust
From the dearest friends you thought once had
From whom you thought were there in times of sad
When you gave your all and then some more
Yet happy you were to give to those whom you adore
For that is love and all its gifts
Pleasures token was in the giving but now there's rifts
And how it came to pass, to be this way
You know not how you thought they'd always stay
And yet you love so unconditionally
For that is how you chose to live
Having so much love inside to share, to give
For that is me and how I am I cannot change
And for some people that may sound so strange
For me the pleasures of the living
Is opening my heart and purely giving
MPB (c)  From 'Dear J~Poetry from the soul'

Forget chocolate, sex and money... caring for others can bring just as much pleasure and benefit your health

• Support-giving triggers reward-related regions of the brain
• Helping others can boost happiness and reduce stress

Caring for friends and family benefits the giver, not just the receiver, scientists say.
Confirming the proverb 'it is better to give than to receive' researchers at the University of California say that lending support to others is a pleasurable experience which can boost happiness and lower stress.
During trials they discovered that when patients were able to help loved ones they experienced positive emotions commonly associated with chocolate, sex and money.

Researchers at the University of California say that lending support to others is a pleasurable experience which can boost happiness and lower stress

Lead researcher, Naomi Eisenberger said: 'When people talk about the ways in which social support is good for our health, they typically assume that the benefits of social support come from the support we receive from others.
'But it now seems likely that some of the health benefits of social support actually come from the support we provide to others.'
During the study 20 young heterosexual couples in healthy relationships were observed.
Each of the men were subjected to painful electric shocks while their girlfriends underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) brain scans which measured changes in blood flow related to neural activity in the brain.
At times, the women could provide support by holding the arm of their boyfriends, but on other occasions they were forced to watch as their partners received shocks.
Findings revealed that when women were able to help their boyfriends reward-related regions of the brain were activated, including the ventral striatum and septal area.
Under conditions in which no support was provided, these regions showed decreased activity.
Eisenberger said: 'One of these regions, the ventral striatum, is typically active in response to simple rewards like chocolate, sex and money.'
'The fact that support-giving also activates this region suggests that support-giving may be processed by the brain as a very basic type of rewarding experience.'
Findings, published in the journal Psychosomatic Medicine also suggest that offering support to others can help reduce stress.
Scientists noted an interesting pattern of neural activity in the septal area, which in addition to being a pleasure center, plays a role in stress-reduction by inhibiting regions of the brain that process threats.
Eisenberger said: 'This finding suggests that support-giving may have stress-reducing effects for the person who provides the support.'
She also noted that support-giving could be a basic human instinct, aiding the 'survival of our species.'

Eisenberger is now conducting further research on how giving to others may reduce our stress responses and ultimately contribute to better health.

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