July 2021

How photographs can boost your wellbeing

As Covid restrictions are finally being lifted, how are you feeling?

The pandemic has understandably caused a great deal of anxiety. Recent research indicates that for many people, positive feelings such as happiness, satisfaction and sense of purpose fell dramatically during the pandemic. Some of this was due to the very existence of the pandemic itself, but there was also the related impact on so many other social, environmental and economic aspects of life.

And of course, a major cause of anxiety and disappointment during the pandemic was that many of us were unable to see our loved ones for months on end. Hopefully that is now beginning to change, and in our recent article Together Again we looked at some great ways of celebrating being together again with family and friends.

But all this does not mean that you will now feel fabulous all the time. The last 18 months have been very difficult in lots of ways, and even though we are now gradually returning to some semblance of normality, it is still ok not to be ok. In fact, many of us are feeling anxious about the fact that things are being relaxed, and wondering where it will all go from here.

Every Mind Matters

Even before the pandemic, there was a growing awareness in the UK of the huge impact that mental health issues have on individuals and our society as a whole.

According to the mental health charity Mind, 1 in 4 people will experience a mental health problem of some kind each year in England, and 1 in 6 people experience a common mental health problem – for example anxiety or depression – in any given week.

The NHS website Every Mind Matters has a quick Mind Plan Quiz. This is a tool to help you work out how you are feeling and suggest ways you can boost your wellbeing. Some of these ways are:

• Reframe unhelpful thoughts.
• Be in the present.
• Get good sleep.
• Connect with others.
• Live a healthy life.
• Do something for yourself.

The importance of connecting with others

Connecting with others is one of the key ways listed above that can help us boost our mental wellbeing. It makes us feel less alone and isolated, and reminds us that we are part of a family, neighbourhood, or community of like-minded others.

Whether we connect with people face to face, by video or telephone call, or on social media, we all need to know that there is someone out there who cares.

What can also be of immense help is to have a permanent reminder of the people we care about, and who care about us. An ideal way to create this is by family photography.

The benefits of family photography

Surrounding yourself with photographs of family, friends and loved ones can be a huge boost to your wellbeing. There are three main reasons for this:

• Looking at photographs of happy times can induce a sense of calm, because it takes you out of the present situation and enables you to relive the positive emotions from when the photograph was taken. It is a valuable tool for healing to reframe unhelpful thoughts, as mentioned above.
• Studying images of those you love can make you feel more connected to their lives. Seeing the smiles on their faces can motivate you to keep going, and to look forward to spending time with them sometime soon.
• Thinking about family helps to put everything into perspective. Think of it a bit like the Circle of Life in the Lion King. You have a key part to play in the story of your family, and by doing this you have helped to build a strong force that will continue to generate and grow in years to come.

So, if you would like to update the family photography on display in your home, why not bring the family along for a fun photoshoot at Venture Studios? It will be a happy and memorable time for you all, an ideal way to celebrate being back together again.

You will also be able to choose an image to take away either in a frame or as wall art. A special image that you will be able to look at every day and that will boost your wellbeing for years to come.

Take a look at our range of family photography experiences here. You can book online or contact your nearest Venture Studios.

And if you hurry, you may even catch one of our fabulous Together Again offers here!

Check back here soon for more tips and offers from Venture Studios.