Volunteer: It’s Good for Your Health

Volunteering in your community is not just chicken soup for your soul – it’s also good for your health. Research shows that volunteering can lower certain health risks associated with anxiety and depression.

Becoming engaged and giving back to your community improves your general well-being. It promotes higher self-esteem, self-confidence and self-worth that can help in all aspects of your life.

Some of the health benefits associated with volunteerism, as reported by Volunteer Florida, include:

• A heightened sense of well-being, which helps to reduce insomnia, strengthen your immune system and hasten surgery recovery time.
• Improved self-esteem, which helps to reduce your heart rate and blood pressure, increase endorphin production, enhance your immune system, buffer the impact of stress and combat social isolation.
• Improved self-confidence and self-worth, which helps to reduce your blood pressure and improve immune function.

Do you need one more reason? Volunteers have a longer life expectancy than non-volunteers. Studies report that engaging in regular volunteer work increases life expectancy, because social interaction improves your quality of life. Volunteering in highly social situations can help you develop interpersonal relationships, which can act as a buffer against stress and illness.

Volunteer opportunities abound at Good Shepherd. We have a variety of sites to choose from, including many outpatient locations, and have numerous jobs to fit each individual’s skills and talents. You could:

• Be a companion to our long-term care residents
• Act as a patient/resident transporter Be a patient ambassador – welcome and help orient new patients
• Work as a receptionist or office assistant

To learn more about volunteering at Good Shepherd, call 610-776-3125 or visit our volunteer page.