Laugh Your Way to Increased Health and Happiness
Laughter is free, fun, and good for your health. Here are some of the things laughter can do for you, and some ways to bring more joy into your life.
Benefits of Laughter
- Boost your immune system. Research on the connection between laughter and physical health is still ongoing, but some benefits are clear. Laughing helps to fight stress and may enhance your immune response. This may make you more resistant to colds and other illnesses.
- Diminish pain. Laughing is an effective way to decrease pain. Many individuals living with chronic pain report that humor helps make their experiences more bearable. Some hospitals even offer laughter therapy to complement conventional treatments for cancer and other conditions.
- Get a little workout. Every time you chuckle, you boost your heart rate and increase your circulation, which burns more calories than just sitting still. You still need to exercise, but every little bit helps.
Simple Strategies to Harness the Power of Positive Thinking
Simple Strategies to Harness the Power of Positive Thinking
Every self-help guru on the planet will tell you that the way to experience happiness, prosperity, and health is through the doorway of positive thinking. And while that’s easy to talk about when all is going great in your life, it may not be much comfort to you if things are crashing and burning all around you.
But the self-help gurus are right about the power of positive thinking. You can begin to take control of your thoughts and guide them in the direction you want your life to go. Your thoughts are the driving force toward your destiny.
Use these simple strategies to head toward the happiness you crave:
1. Smile and be thankful. Much of what you experience in life depends on what you pay attention to. Each day, some things will go right and some things will go wrong. If you pay more attention to the things that go right and dwell on those things, you’ll experience more happiness.
* Smile and greet everyone you meet warmly. Smiles are contagious, and you’ll instantly begin to feel a difference inside yourself.
* Pause throughout the day to think about things that you are grateful for. The more you practice gratitude, the better you’ll feel about life and about yourself.
2. Surround yourself with positive people. Most people who soar to incredible heights of accomplishment in their lives do so because they surround themselves with positive, encouraging people. It’s hard to have a positive outlook when everyone around you is complaining all the time.
* If you surround yourself with people who routinely seek the good inside of you, you’ll begin to do the same. Spend less time with negative people and more time with those who speak words of support into your life. If you do, you’ll experience greater power, self-confidence and joy.
3. Think constructively. For positive thinking to truly make a difference in your life, you must replace negative thoughts as they occur. Most important, however, is the need to get whatever benefits you can out of the negative thought before you erase it from your mind.
* Instead of ignoring your negative thought and hoping it will go away, ask yourself if the critic inside of you is trying to teach you something valuable. Take note of the lesson, and then quickly discard the negative thought. Replace it with a positive perspective on the same situation.
* Whenever you experience negative thinking, ask yourself: “What else could this mean?” If someone treats you unfairly, it could mean that they don’t like you very much. But it probably means they’re just having a bad day. How can you help? Do you see how this question can change your entire outlook?
4. Use positive affirmations. Often, when faced with a stressful situation, we resort to a pattern of thinking and behaving that has become a habit. How do you create new habits that support your success instead of sabotaging it? Positive affirmations are the key.
* Write out the things you want in life and the qualities you want to possess. Write these statements in the present tense, and use positive language. Repeat these statements to yourself over and over again. Do this every day, and before long you’ll strongly believe the words of the affirmation you’ve created for yourself.
* If a habit of thinking is holding you back, what’s stopping you from creating a new habit? Try this today and experience its power for yourself.
The negative thoughts of the critic inside of you serve a valuable purpose. Things aren’t always rosy, and it’s important to learn from your experiences so that you don’t make the same mistakes. However, you can begin to harness the power of positive thinking today. Apply these simple strategies to move closer to the joy and success you deserve.
The Power of Positive Thinking
photo credit: Pink Sherbet Photography
Every self-help guru on the planet will tell you that the way to experience happiness, prosperity, and health is through the doorway of positive thinking. And while that’s easy to talk about when all is going great in your life, it may not be much comfort to you if things are crashing and burning all around you.
But the self-help gurus are right about the power of positive thinking. You can begin to take control of your thoughts and guide them in the direction you want your life to go. Your thoughts are the driving force toward your destiny.
The Joy of Laughter
“Laughter is the best medicine” is a phrase that dates back to biblical times as an old Proverb and it’s still widely used today all over the world. That’s because it’s true!
Let’s take a look at what happens inside your body, mind and spirit when you laugh.
Laughter’s Effect on Your Body
Endorphins are released throughout your body, stimulating muscles, nerves, organs and tissues when you laugh. Studies show these endorphins give relief to chronic pain, help to relieve stress and promote functioning of the immune system. Laughter literally helps heal your body.
Laughter and Your Mind
Happy thoughts lead to a more positive outlook on life. When you’re hanging out with friends and having good conversation that produces smiles and laughter, your mind’s producing happy thoughts.
On the other hand, if you’re always around people who never smile and always find something to complain about, you’ll lean toward a more negative outlook on life.
Strengthening Your Inner Being
Laughing causes your inner being to be emotionally and physically strengthened. When you laugh or even smile, your inner being is stimulated in an affirmative way, producing a more positive outlook on life. This helps your body produce more self-healing endorphins, which actually helps your body remain healthy and running optimally!
Boosting Your Spirits
Laughter causes a lift in your spirits, helping you feel uplifted. Laughter not only helps you personally, it’s also very contagious and infectious, which helps those around you feel less stress and anxious.
Don’t you just love it when you hear a baby or toddler laugh? What happens to you? You can’t help but laugh too! Laughter begins to develop in humans as early as 3 months of age and a baby’s laughter is one of the most contagious of all human sounds.
Laughter and Your Relationships
When two people share a funny story or a silly situation arises between two people, there’s a unique bonding that is created. Something special is formed between the two that only they can relate with. It’s an inside joke that is special to those who’ve shared in the moment.
When two people spend a lot of time together in laughter, a stronger, more ever-lasting relationship develops.
In a marriage, studies show couples that laugh together stay together much longer, if not for life. Think about a truly happy couple you know. Sure, every family has their issues and marriage takes work, but chances are they spend a lot of time laughing together. This doesn’t happen by accident either. It can be created and fostered!
When you choose to embrace laughter, you’ll be able to get through many more rough spots in life and come out a happier and healthier person.
Life can be tough, so why not choose to make it more joyous? You can if you choose to.
Always try to find joy in every situation and laugh as often as possible each and every day. Also, by spending more time around positive people, who love life and love to laugh, you’ll be amazed at how you begin to feel on the inside and out!
Achieving Supreme Health with Positive Affirmations
Many of us wish to lose weight or get in better shape. Perhaps you’re concerned about your health and have made the decision to take better care of your body. Are there things you could be doing to be healthier? If so, you’re not alone!
When you choose the right foods and exercise, you’ll look and feel better, reduce your stress levels, sleep more soundly, have more energy, and enjoy better health. Sometimes, though, making the right choices isn’t as easy as it sounds, is it?
The good news is there are some simple things you can do to help make positive choices and achieve the better health you deserve!
Do You Need More Motivation?
If the alarm went off 45 minutes early in the morning so you can exercise before heading into the office, how would you react? Would you reply with negativity and tell yourself that skipping one day won’t hurt, or that exercise is pointless?
When you pass that fast food store with the $1.39 burgers and you’re low on time and big on hunger, what choice do you usually make? Eating healthier isn’t always as easy as picking up convenient, greasy foods. But would you go the extra mile for a healthy meal?
What about sleep? In addition to exercising and eating right, you also need to get enough sleep to live a healthy lifestyle. When you don’t sleep well, you’ll be less inclined to make healthy food and exercise decisions.
Sleeping well helps you become more energetic and passionate about all things in your life, including your commitment to your health!
It can be difficult to get enough rest when there are things you’d rather be doing!
Do you give up your sleep if you have work to do? Do you stay up late partying whenever you can?
Positive Affirmations for Health Can Help!
In those moments when you feel weak and you don’t want to eat right, get enough sleep, or exercise, affirmations targeting your health can be just what you need to help you make the healthy choice.
Positive Affirmations are positive statements that replace the negative thought processes in your mind. If you think they don’t work, I have news for you – do they ever!
When you start to talk yourself out of exercising, a negative affirmation is being repeated in your mind. An affirmation that says “I can’t do it.” So if a negative affirmation works, why can’t a positive one?
For example, you can say, “I allow my body to receive enough rest and exercise,” or “The more I take care of myself, the better I feel.” Using statements like these will give you that gentle push you need when you feel inclined to be pessimistic.
Strive to repeat healthy living positive affirmations to yourself several times each day and whenever you need encouragement. It will take a bit of time, but, soon enough, you’ll find yourself making healthy decisions more and more often.
The more often you choose the healthy lifestyle you desire, the better you’ll feel, both physically and mentally. Make the commitment to your health by incorporating healthy living positive affirmations into your daily routine today!
[Positive Affirmations] Top 10 Food and Nutrition Affirmations
When you have “convenience” food bombarding you from every direction, it can be difficult to choose options that give your body the nourishment it needs.
However, if you have daily reminders and effective tools at your disposal, you just may find that eating the right foods and feeding your body the best fuels becomes a lot easier.
Of course, there will always be temptation, but when you equip yourself with anti-temptation tools, you will be able to quickly re-focus your mind on your greater goal of getting healthy!
Using Affirmations to Make the Healthy Food and Nutrition Choices
When everyone around you at the office is indulging in burgers, fries, and sugary drinks, it’s awfully tempting to join in, isn’t it?
But what if you could stop that temptation in its tracks and actually choose to make a healthy choice? You don’t need me to tell you that fatty and sugary choices are not the kinds of food that your body needs – you need to tell yourself!
It can be hard in moments of temptation to make the right choice, but with the help of positive affirmations, you can re-train your brain to replace the desire for junk food with healthy choices.
Affirmations can help you stick to your diet, say no to temptation, and eat nourishing and satisfying foods. How? By replacing the negative spiral of thoughts in your mind with powerful, positive ones.
But first you have to believe that it is possible to gain control over your thirsts, desires, and cravings. The first step in making a lasting change in your life is to make the commitment to success. Are you committed? Do you believe that you can overcome your cravings?
Once you’ve set your commitment in stone, you’re ready to learn the top 10 affirmations to get you through moments of weakness.
Top 10 Food and Nutrition Affirmations
Before reading the list below, you should know that affirmations are most successful when you internalize the saying and repeat it frequently. Whether you’re having a good or bad day, you need to be constantly repeating these positive statements in your mind. Temptation will strike when you least expect it, so it’s better to be prepared!
1. I can neutralize bad habits with good food, exercise, and healthy living.
2. I am proud to reach out to my support network instead of leaning on food for comfort.
3. I am losing weight for me because I love me.
4. I set aside time just for me.
5. My good health and productivity are the rewards for the nourishing foods I eat.
6. Weight gain happens over time, so my weight loss equally requires time, patience, and lifestyle changes.
7. I use self-care, not self-control.
8. The more I take care of myself, the better I feel.
9. I am firmly committed to staying active and healthy.
10. I deserve a healthy body and mind.
When you look at these food and nutrition affirmations, they may seem like ideals – behaviors and thoughts that you only wish you could have – but each time you reaffirm them by saying them aloud, you’re slowly changing your mindset. Over time, these ideals will become a reality through your thoughts and actions.
But remember, you must first believe you can change. Once you make the commitment to your success, you will change your attitudes about food and you’ll be thankful you did!
"Your level of Self-Confidence is directly related to your level of success"
