The Benefits of Sisterhood

‘Women in bathrooms are some of the most supportive and empowering people on the planet’.

I read that quote on social media and I kept going back to it because it made me smile initially, then feel proud to be a woman who likes to connect with other women. It also reminded me how profoundly important it is for me and other women I know, to connect with each other in all areas of our life and how easy we connect with each other.

I don’t know if men experience the same connection in shared bathrooms but for women, we know that another female of any age, generation and culture will give something needed; advice, help and support to any other female within that zone and beyond, if required. It’s like a secret tribe, an immediate connection, the unspoken knowing that behind the doors theres a support network, strange but true.

Where is a Sisterhood.

Girlfriends, work colleagues, exercise friends, family or neighbours, there is a sisterhood in each group of females that come together for a cause, work or common interest and it inclusively spans generations or cultures.

As females, we like to do things together, we make the effort to catch up, share, care and be ‘there’ for each other. So what is it that draws females to be part of a sisterhood? Why do we hunt in packs and need the company of other women?

Read on to find out why a sisterhood and soul-sisters are important for females to have in their lives.

Sharing is empowering 

A problem shared is often a problem solved; well it does at least make you feel better when you share with your friends. Research shows that women live longer and have happier lives when they have a connection with other women and as females it’s an instinctive necessity to have some form of sisterhood relationship. In the western world where we have become more isolated due to the way we live and work it’s harder to connect with other women in person but social media has become a great way for women to connect through selective groups and extended friends, because women are social creatures.

Support and Encouragement

Support from other women as well as supporting them is rewarding. Mentoring and encouraging young women in my business has been just as empowering for me as it has for them. I learn from my young female staff, businesses we partner with, friends, and female community but what I find most comforting is the support you get back when you need it. Intentionally seeking out a supportive female community of an interest or business group you are interested in, is one way you can build on your sisterhood to find support and give it, because we thrive while sharing and supporting each other.

Soul-Sisters for Survival

Relationships with people who share similar goals, enthusiasm and visions are the soul-sisters that arrive in our lives when we least expect it. They are the people we connect with on many level. The people we cherish, share dreams and achievements with and rely on for the truth.  For those of us lucky to have ‘sisters’ of any kind, we all know how precious this circle of women are in our lives but I have also realised how important it is to expand your circle or create another but particularly to invite others in.

It’s rare in any relationship for one person to meet all the emotional, social and physical needs of another and a good reason why women tend to belong to a few groups for different aspects of their lives.

A sisterhood is often the family we choose.

Katrina Thorpe, Owner – ikatan Spa Noosa