There’s been a lot in the news for the last couple years about how being married or otherwise socially engaged is good for one’s health. Without reading the stories very closely, I’d always assumed that the constant stress of a relationship helped condition the heart and other vital organs. Turns out I was wrong. People in close relationships (marriages are cited most frequently) tend to feel more supported and are thus more likely to seek out medical attention when something goes wrong. Basically, people become dependant on each other and tend to try to keep the other person around and healthy. This health benefit is realized most acutely by men, I suppose because it means they don’t ever have to worry again about doing dishes or washing their clothes.
There’s a downside, of course. Turns out there’s also research out there claiming that sharing a bed with another person makes a man dull. As someone who’s 1) married and 2) a man, you’d think I’d be more aware of all these phenomena. I feel fairly healthy, but I admit I haven’t had an EKG lately. And as far as being dull goes, I suppose that’s true. Though I don’t know that I was ever terribly exciting in the first place.