Want to Feel Energized and Healthy? Why You Need a Pet

What does it take to feel energized each day? 

Most people think of changing their diet, habits, even their job. 

Nutrients are vital for living an energized life. Improving your habits can also have a positive effect on your energy levels. And that awful job – finding more fulfilling work can definitely boost energy. 

Another way to feel energized, fulfilled, and happy is to get a pet. Today, we’ll look at how getting a pet can help you improve how you feel overall. 

Feel Energized and Full of Life – 5 Health Benefits of Pets

Wouldn’t it be nice if there was a single cure for: 

• Stressful living
• Depression
• Low energy
• Loneliness
• Poor health

Actually, there is – a pet. Animals can have an amazing effect on your physical, mental, and emotional health. Here are five reasons why you should consider getting a pet. 

1. Pets Are Heart-Healthy

Have you ever wondered how to lower your heart rate naturally? A dog or cat might be the answer. 

The health of your heart – or lack thereof – is often related to how you respond to stress. If you’re living a non-stop, stressful life, you could end up with heart disease. Stress releases hormones that trigger an inflammatory response in the body. Left untreated, the inflammation can take a toll on your heart. 

Thankfully, your fur babies can help. According to Harvard Medical School, owning a pet can result in: 

• Lower blood pressure
• Less anxiety
• Less stress
• Lower heart rate, even during times of stress
• Lower cholesterol
• Lower triglyceride levels

2. Pets Are Good for Your Mental and Emotional Health

In addition to reducing stress and anxiety, pets can prove to be good alternatives to antidepressants. Many people who suffer from depression find that antidepressants don’t work for them. However, a pet can positively impact people with depression. 

You’ve probably heard of emotional service animals? A dog for mental illness can help a person feel calmer, as well as happier. Many people with pets say they experience mental health improvements from owning a pet. They don’t feel as low or as lonely when they’re around their pet. 

3. Pets Connect You to Your Community 

Loneliness is an awful feeling. In some cases, it can be downright dangerous. 

When you own a pet, you get a sense of companionship. You also get a sense of community because when you take your adorable pet for a walk, people can’t help but ask you about them. If you own a dog, you can take them to a dog park and get to know dog lovers within your community. 

4. Pets Get You Moving

Another way to lower your heart rate and blood pressure, improve your health, and even lose some weight is to take your pet for a walk. Pets need to move. They’re excited to move because they’re basically little balls of energy and they need to burn it off. Taking your pet for a walk will keep you both healthy and even make you feel energized. 

5. Pets Are a Wonderful Source of Comfort

It’s a sad fact of life, but there will be difficult times. Job loss, loss of a loved one in death, divorce, a big move – all these things can leave us feeling distraught. Even if we aren’t prone to depression, these events can feel like a gut punch. 

Even during these difficult times, a pet can help by being an enormous source of comfort. Just knowing that your pet is ready to snuggle with you at a moment’s notice is enough to get through some of those tough times. 

Other Tips for Improving Your Health and Wellness

The therapeutic effect of pet ownership is profound. Having a pet around to love and care for can improve your health and help you feel energized each day. Add these next tips to your daily life and you’ll feel better than ever!

Start Practicing Yoga or Tai Chi

Yoga and Tai Chi are incredibly relaxing exercises. They also help you gain mental clarity and focus. Practice these regularly and you can: 

• Reduce stress
• Improve heart health
• Improve your sleep
• Feel energized after your practice 

The fun thing about these practices is that you can do them with your pets, or someone else’s. Animals love to get involved, sometimes even mirroring the poses you do. You can even opt to try baby goat yoga as a funny, enjoyable way to get fit. 

Listen to Some Happy Tunes

Like pets, music can also affect our physical, mental, and emotional health. 

• Relaxing sleep music can lower your heart rate naturally, lower stress and anxiety, and promote deeper sleep
• Positive, upbeat music can have similar effects as antidepressants on your mental health. A 2017 study found that music is so powerful that it is being considered as an alternative treatment to prescribed antidepressants. 

Invest in Some Plants

What if you’re allergic to pets? You’re not a hopeless case – you have options. One option is a plant. Houseplants can: 

• Improve mental health
• Boost the immune system
• Improve air quality
• Eliminate some household toxins

Improved mental health and air quality can help you sleep better and feel energized in the morning. 

Choose Vegan Mattresses and Cotton Pillows

Want to know how to fall asleep at night and how to get energy in the morning? The answer is high-quality sleep products. Everything from the sleeping clothes you wear to the mattress you sleep on can impact how well you sleep. 

At White Lotus Home, you can find comfortable, all-natural mattresses and cotton pillows. The vegan products are perfect for people looking to make an ethical purchase or those who are allergic to animals. 

Mutual Admiration Society – You and Your Pet Benefit Each Other

Once you decide to invest in a pet, you’ll notice just how much love you have for them. The love that you have is reciprocated, too (yep, even the aloof cat in your life loves you back). You’ll recognize what a deep, beneficial impact they’re having on your physical, mental, and emotional health. 

You know what? You’re helping them, too. Adopting a pet from a shelter can save their life. Showing a formerly abused pet lots of love can boost their spirits, as well. Love benefits all beings, no matter what they look like. 

What if you’re still not sure? Talk to some pet owners. Watch funny animal YouTube videos. They’ll crack you up and warm your heart and you’ll soon want to have similar experiences of your very own.