Gift Giver Benefits

How do givers benefit from gifting? Gifting can make both recipient and giver feel good. As we have explored in previous blogs, gifting can create bonds and become psychologically beneficial to both receiver and giver. However, today I want us to talk about the various benefits explicitly experienced by givers.

Givers are usually the most crucial aspect of gifting. People often talk about how the receivers feel when gifted and neglect focusing on the giver. How the giver feels after gifting is as important as how the recipient feels after receiving a gift. Also, as significant is how gifting benefits mostly more than receivers. Let us explore some of the benefits of gifting.

Gifting Makes Us Happy

Giving gifts makes us happy due to various reasons. First, giving gifts is embedded in our DNA. Humans are social and community-minded beings who benefit from being generous. The reason for this is we are wired to take care and share with each other. Therefore, when we give gifts, we act on our primal instincts, and nature rewards us with the feeling of happiness.

The second reason is brain chemistry. Research suggests our brains are designed to produce endorphins (feel-good hormones) when we give. As a matter of fact, studies have shown humans feel an overwhelming sense of happiness when they spend money (however little) on others. Whoever said that money couldn’t buy happiness was clearly not buying gifts for their loved ones.

Gifting is Linked to Good Health

A lot of research has been conducted on the links between giving and good health. Researchers have found that giving improves physical health and longevity due to the reduction of stress.

Remember the endorphins we talked about earlier? They are not the only hormones produced released when giving a gift. Other hormones such as oxytocins, serotonin, and dopamine are also produced. The cocktail of these hormones tends to have positive health benefits in the human body. As a result, people who often give gifts tend to have lower blood pressure than those who don’t, thus increasing their lifespan and general quality of life.

Gifting Evokes Gratitude

Researchers have found out that gratitude is essential to happiness. More than that, it is also important to the giver’s health (as we have just discussed) and social bonds. The recognition and expression of gratitude boosts positivity in the giver and causes them to be more optimistic about their lives.

Try and remember how you felt the last time you did something nice for someone, and they expressed their gratitude towards you. You probably felt optimistic and positive about yourself and your life, didn’t you? That’s what giving gifts does to you.

On a side note, some research has linked this feeling of positivity and optimism to causing people to exercise more. As you can see, one of the benefits of gifting is it has the potential to prompt you to lead a healthier life.

Gifting Can Be Contagious and Addictive

Remember the cocktail of hormones we talked about earlier? We said they promote better physical health in people. However, they serve another purpose. They induce feelings of warmth, connection, and euphoria.

Oxytocin, in particular, causes people to feel like giving more and being more empathic towards others. These are symptoms of an “oxytocin high” that can last for up to two hours after giving the initial gift. Neuroscientists believe an oxytocin high can trigger a cycle where one person’s generosity can trigger another’s. This is why we see charity events that happen with substantial physical attendance perform better than those conducted through asking for money on the streets or online.

As we have seen, giving gifts is, directly and indirectly, beneficial to givers. One may argue that givers benefit more than recipients. Regardless of which side of that debate you may be, there is no denying the myriad of benefits giving gifts brings. Therefore, do something nice for yourself by doing something nice for someone else.