Are you a social butterfly, a wallflower, firefly, or evergreen?
Butterfly: High interaction, comfortable with many types of conversation. Butterflies enjoy frequent social interaction and are happy engaging in a wide range of conversations from light small talk to deeper conversation. What energizes them the most is being in conversation and connecting with people often.
Wallflower: Content with less frequent interaction. Wallflowers tend to be more reserved and comfortable with space between social interactions. They may enjoy casual connections and quieter social environments, but still deeply value meaningful relationships and feeling loved.
Firefly: Deep connection with time to recharge. Fireflies thrive on deep, meaningful conversations, usually in small groups or one-to-one settings. After socializing, they often need time alone to recharge before engaging again.
Evergreen: Frequent and deeply connected. Evergreens enjoy regular interaction with people they know well. While they may appear social like butterflies, they are most fulfilled by deep relationships with close friends and family, and often maintain consistent contact with them.
If any of the descriptions resonated with you, then you are diving deeper into the quality of your social health. Social health is the quality and structure of your relationships and the degree to which they nourish, support, and sustain you.
Julie Kaminski, a holistic wellness health coach and the owner of the SAVOR Method and Founder of SAVOR Society, hosted a women’s meeting intended for women to connect and refuel on March 7, 2026 in Charleston, South Carolina, to discuss social health.
Two of the SAVOR Society members, Nancy Newman, age 63, and Elle Kaminski, age 25, shared their feedback on their first meeting during a conversation with Tyrisha “Ty” Irwin of Integrated Media Publishing.
When Newman met Julie Kaminski, she had been promoting her work at a local gym, and the invitation to join the SAVOR Society meeting came as an opportunity for nourishment, not a sales pitch.
Newman not only respected Julie’s approach but also the idea of women thriving outside their productivity, which drew her in.
Permission to Refuel: Refueling isn’t selfish.
At the meeting, Newman shared that what resonated with her most was the “permission to refuel.”
Women, especially if they’re caregivers and community builders, often carry an invisible belief that if they slow down, everything will fall apart. To Newman, the truth is far less noisy and more powerful: taking time for yourself isn’t indicative that you failed, but it is part of your ability to keep showing up every day.
On the same track, this theme was evident in the way people spoke during the SAVOR Society meeting. There was no circus act, and not one presented the idea that women must have everything figured out. Instead, the women came to the same conclusion.
You can be the kind of person who gives without burning your nervous system to the ground. Once women see that others are also doing the same internal docketing by addressing boundaries, limitations, and refueling intentionally, it changes the entire emotional temperature in the room.
Newman described it as a shift in thinking and a form of healing when identifying the difference between “I’m doing this alone” and “We’re all trying to do this, too.”
Barriers break when women choose community.
Elle Kaminski chimes in with her own perspective. “In my generation, it’s easy to keep your guard up,” she shared. “People can feel protective of their experiences, and their generation,” because some may not understand what it’s like to live inside your exact timeline.
However, SAVOR Society didn’t ask anyone to translate their feelings into something easier or to use specific generational lingo for mental digestion.
Elle Kaminski described the environment as “conducive and inspiring.” To her, it was a space where women could share their deepest thoughts, mistakes, feelings, fears, and hopes without being treated as unimportant or too much. She felt seen and heard across age experience, and past the “you’re too young/too inexperienced” assumptions people sometimes unconsciously hold.
For her, what changed her thought process wasn’t only the content of the conversation, but it also triggered something else unexpectedly. “It gave me the courage to believe that my feelings were and are valid.”
“I’ve been where you are,” Nancy Newman had said in support during the meeting, as did several other women throughout the conversation. Each one remembered and reflected on what it’s like to be in the middle of something hard, and knowing you can come out the other side regardless of age and demographics.
For Elle Kaminski, that was the light at the end of the tunnel. Getting reassurance that someone else survived the same emotional terrain instilled more hope for a better future.
Multi-generational connection is the neutralizer of defensive thinking.
Both Newman and Elle Kaminski highlight the same deeper concept: multi-generational communities aren’t always “comfortable” or “easy,” but they’re often impactful.
Elle Kaminski commented that connecting across generations can be complicated. “People carry defensiveness about their generation because they believe their lived experiences are theirs alone, and no one truly gets it.” When different groups don’t blend, stereotypes and misconceptions start to fester. However, when they sat with people who grew up in different economies, cultures, societal expectations, and emotional expectations, a revelation was formed.
They realized that regardless of age or demographics, they face challenges, have to navigate uncharted paths, and are all searching for safety and a sense of belonging.
In other words, age stops being a boundary and becomes a bridge connecting people.
Why do men hesitate to form new connections?
As the conversation continued, a question was posed: Why do some men struggle to join groups like this?
Newman explained that she believes the hesitation is related to “something societal and rooted in expectations: femininity equals emotion, and emotion equals weakness.” Men are often raised to “perform strength instead of practicing vulnerability,” so the idea of deep relationship-building becomes awkward and even threatening to the perceived image of manhood.
She added that the cycle has continued for generations, where men aren’t encouraged to put themselves out there emotionally to talk about what’s going on with them. “In society, men are influenced, raised, and biologically built to not share feelings,” she said, noting how women treat men and how women’s expectations can also influence the outcome of men’s emotional vulnerability.
“Women tend to assume emotional closeness as friendship. But men are taught to interpret emotional depth differently and in a more intimate way – something shared with a partner or spouse, and not with friends.” There’s a cultural disconnect that makes vulnerability baffling.
Elle Kaminski mentions that this is a "multifaceted problem” because it may be more challenging for some men to make friends than it is for some women. She noted that the idea behind patriarchy, “being the protector and defender,” influences men to associate emotions as “weak or (being emotionally expressive) is frowned upon by other men.” Elle Kaminski highlighted that even general marketing is tailored for men and women. “In marketing, you’ll see some products that say ‘for her’ or ‘for him,’" she addressed. “There’s this idea that men are supposed to always be strong and powerful, but there’s strength in being vulnerable too," she shared. She emphasizes different challenges that men face that may not be easily understood.
When Elle Kaminski mentions the impact on men’s health such as the lower rates of doctor visits, stigma around emotional expression, and the loneliness behind it — leading to higher suicide rates, Newman’s point lands even harder: Women’s relationships may be a pathway to community longevity not because women are “naturally superior,” but because women have been culturally “allowed” to practice emotional skills that prevent isolation from becoming a permanent force.
“I think it’s part of womanhood and girlhood to compliment another woman and start a conversation in hopes of a new friendship. But you don’t see men going out of their way to compliment another guy, and trying to make new friends,” Elle Kaminski said – recalling witnessing her two older brothers interact with their long-time male friends. “(My brothers) have male friendships, spend time together, and visit, but I think there’s a lightness to it since they’ve known each other for a long time and aren’t really searching for more friendships.”
Newman suggests a practical approach: if men gather, maybe start with something active first — something physical and low-pressure —then transition into facilitated conversation. Her point isn’t to force vulnerability, but to break the ice without making the connection feel exposed.
With the SAVOR Method, thriving requires honesty. Julie Kaminski’s vision ties everything together. What Newman and Elle Kaminski describe aligns with a structured approach. As the creator of The SAVOR Method and a nationally board-certified health and wellness coach with a background in counseling, athletic training, and fitness training, Julie Kaminski focuses on an expansive view of health, helping people reconnect with their health, energy, and purpose.
In SAVOR Society, the intention is a thriving mind, body, and spirit, guided by the SAVOR Method:
Sustenance: understanding what you eat, when, and why
Activity: how you move and stay engaged with life, and what feels right for you
Variables: accounting for individual, medical, and genetic factors that shape you (stress, seasons, identity, circumstances)
Organization: managing stress and the demands of everyday life, so your health isn’t always in emergency mode
Refueling: practicing positive psychology and rediscovering joy. This is the often-overlooked element — especially social health
Refueling through social health is the bridge between everything both women said: expectations, forming boundaries, permission to refuel, cross-generational connection, and the relief of not having to do hard things solo.
Refueling is when the body learns safety, and the mind stops bracing for impact.
Both interviews emphasize the importance of creating spaces for women to talk transparently about what they need and/or lack on their journey to thrive. When women gather intentionally and center discussions on thriving and how to do that, it not only improves their own lives but also provides evidence that refueling is neither selfish nor a luxury. It’s a lifestyle protecting women’s long-term wellness.
To connect with Julie Kaminski to learn more about The SAVOR Method and SAVOR Society, connect with her through her website, https://juliekaminski.com/.
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