How reading romantic fiction helps in reducing stress

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Reading a good book is like taking a journey.

Reading romantic fiction is living the life of the characters. Experiencing their emotions, hating them and loving them for the decisions they are making.

If you are tired of scrolling social media platforms,

If you are tired of switching Netflix; to Amazon Prime to another OTT Platforms,

If you don’t have any friends to talk about your stress,

You have landed on the right blog. Thank me later. Let me tell you something interesting. 

Last week I was on a long weekend; I had many plans, but nothing happened well. I had created a good To-do List, only to realise that I would have to cancel everything from the list. My brother and mom both turned sick, and those two days we had spent seeing the doctors. I was stressed; I was on social media break, and I had no one to talk to it to anyone. I went into my room and picked up my best friend, none other than my BOOKS. I picked up the Book “It Happens for a Reason” by Indian author Preeti Shenoy. The title resonated with my situation, I didn’t cry, but of course, I wanted to read something which would put me on ease mode. 

The book was about a single mother; she owns a dog boarded facility from her house. The protagonist gets pregnant at 18; her parents force her to drop the child, but she is not happy with the idea. She moves away from her parents, raises her son, follows her passion and works as a part-time gym instructor. Her best friend lives in the same city; they are best friends from school. An incident changes her life overnight; her dog-boarding company shuts down, and she is all over the newspaper with incorrect information. One of her friend’s lives outside India, who once proposed to her to marry him, rejects the proposal and chooses to follow her passion and raise the child. 

She meets the doctor who treats the injured dogs and saves their lives. Later she meets the doctor and starts developing feelings for him, only to realise that he is not interested. Her son sends an email to his father to know how he looks like and who is he. He wants to know whether his father remembers them or not. Later on, her son receives a reply from his father. He mentions that he is happy to meet them; and travels to India to meet them. The protagonist is insecure now with all what-if questions. When they meet, they are still having that spark of love which they had 17 years ago. 

I could imagine both of them deeply in love. I could imagine my reaction to meeting the love of my life, questioning whether we shall be together forever or not, how hopelessly romantic I sounded in my mind. I pinched myself to come out of my dreams and go back to the reading again.

Okay, I won’t write down the summary here; you can read what happened next; isn’t it exciting when someone narrates the story, you are excited, you have reached halfway, and then it suddenly leaves you with the feeling to know what happened next. Well, I don’t want to ruin your excitement. I want you to go and perceive what happened next. 

Reading romantic fiction is more effective than sipping your favourite coffee or watching your favourite movie when you are stressed. It eases your nerves; calms down your muscles. While your brain is busy with imagination, your heart rate also slows down. The best thing about reading fiction is you don’t have to decide what will be ahead. You flow with the story; you fall in love with the characters. It opens a new window for you to think; you experience new things; you will be in the momentum of what shall happen next. You start relating with characters; the love story will remind you of your love story. 

You choose your adventure journey: The fiction book always describes the city or state; they take you on the journey, let the imagination flow. Meet the characters, experience their emotions, cry out your heart, feel the knots in the stomach. Re-read those lines which convey the philosophical boundaries, help you in shifting your mind-shift. Deep dive into their actions and reactions, reminiscing your life memories.

Your Happy Place: When you pick a book, you choose your happy place; you hold the fresh fragrance of the book. You love to escape from your reality. You keep yourself away from distraction, keeping your bookmark, you sit in a quiet place to emerge yourself into the magical place.

Helps calm down your anxiety and stress:  Reading is a workout for your brain. Reading calms down your anxiety and stress helps in focusing and improving your memory. You learn deep insights into various cultures around the world without travelling into that place. Similar to meditation, it calms your mind.

Unleash your creativity: You are empathetic towards the world when you read fiction. When you are focused, you are more creative. Your sleep patterns improve. Stories open your mind, your attitude changes, you are emotionally stable. 

Happiness is greater than pleasure: You are not alone when you read; you are visiting places; you are talking to the characters; you are diving deep into the lives of the characters. It is fascinating that reading increases your dopamine, making you a happier person. 

P.S Reading romantic fiction is my all-time favorite. I have realized that I have a mind-shift towards positivity. I love how reading can change your life. Books are my best friends, and they are a huge part of my life.