3 Health Benefits of Forgiveness

Eid al-Fitr is just a few days away, you have your ticket already and can’t wait to go home and meet some familiar faces that you haven’t seen in a long time. Eid al-Fitr is not merely a culture, it’s a reunion that brings people together and mend broken relationship you had in the past.

Eid al-Fitr encourages people to forgive and forget any differences with others. This ‘tradition’ should not just an exchange of empty words or insincere forgiveness, because forgiving someone who’s done you wrong can be very rewarding. Here is why

1. Unconditional Forgiveness, Key to Longer Lifespan

According to a 2011 study in the Journal of Behavioral Medicine, your grudges might be shaving years off your life. After testing adults ages 66 and older, it’s proven than those who were more forgiving tended to live longer.

2. Forgive for Healthier Heart

A journal titled International Journal of Psychophysiology suggests that people who hold on to grudges tend to have higher heart rates, while the other who are more able to forgive tend to have lower heart rates.

3. Forgive to Lowers Blood Pressure

When someone makes you angry and annoyed, your body triggers the fight-or-flight response, a psychological response when someone in a state of fear and anxiety. Your sincerity to forgive someone doesn’t just relieve the hearts and minds, it also encourage your body to work better.