RESCUE Quality of Life Survey Reveals the State of Friendship in the UK Today

LONDON, May 2, 2018 /PRNewswire/ --

The average British adult reckons they have "enough" friends by the age of 34 and a half, a Rescue commissioned survey by 72Point has found^[i]. After spending most of their early years trying to meet new people and grow their friendship circle, most adults reckon they have a pal for every eventuality midway through their fourth decade. One in 10 even claimed they have tried to drop friends because they had too many to keep up with, however,  the results found a problem shared really is a problem halved, with 79 per cent of people admitting they feel happier after catching up with a friend.

Three quarters of the population believe reminiscing about old times with a pal can help relieve stress. In fact, 68 per cent of respondents think sharing a problem with a friend is of paramount importance to begin solving the issue.

Jennifer Kendall, senior brand manager for RESCUE REMEDY, which commissioned the research, said: "We wanted to find out more about the state of friendship in the UK today and what friendship means to people.

"You would expect that most people would always be on the lookout for new friends, but it turns out that's not the case.

"Sometimes, having too many friends can be troublesome in its own way - with the time one needs to spend maintaining each friendship. All most people want is a small circle of friends they can really trust and confide in when they need to."

The survey found the ideal number of friends for a British adult to have is 11, with a fifth of the population counting between 10-15 close friends in their circle. 84 per cent of respondents said they were happy with the number of friends they can count on at the moment. A third of all respondents reckon they are just too busy to add any more friends to their group and the same number believe they have a friend for every need. A further fifth admit they simply do not enjoy meeting new people, so they do not try and make new friends any more. Of the friends they have, Brits will come to them to talk about worries and concerns once a week on average.

Each friendly pep-talk lasts for around 20 minutes, meaning most people bend the ears of their pals about their troubles for more than an hour a month.

Just under two thirds of the population say they've got a best friend, or one person in particular they will usually talk to if they are worried about something.

It seems even in today's constantly-connected world, face-to-face contact is used most often for communication with friends, with three quarters preferring to chat in person.

Jennifer Kendall added: "When we have a problem, often one of the first mistakes we make is trying to deal with it alone.

"Sharing the burden with a friend can help clear things in your own mind, and when you have a clear mind you may find it easier to make correct decisions.

"Our results showed some of the things Brits are most likely to confide in their friends about are family or relationship issues, problems at work, or day-to-day stress."

"Most of these are topics that everyone has fears about, so confiding in a friend could help them realise that what they are worried about is not that bad."

RESCUE REMEDY:
86% of RESCUE users found they had an 'I can do this' attitude with RESCUE REMEDY to hand, when trying to keep on top of busy days^[ii]. It is a specially blended combination of five Bach™ Original Flower Essences. The flower essences are Star of Bethlehem, Clematis, Impatiens, Rock Rose and Cherry Plum. RESCUE® is available from Boots, Holland & Barrett, independent pharmacies and health food stores, grocery stores nationwide and online at http://www.amazon.co.uk .

For more information, go to http://www.rescueremedy.co.uk

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i. Survey of 2,000 (Nat Rep) UK adults, March 2018

ii. RESCUE Quality of Life Survey, Harris Interactive, December 2014. Survey carried out on RESCUE users to 314 women in the UK