Not sure if you have been sequestered in a hidden location or studying film with Nick Saban, but there has been some crazy stuff going on with the presidential election this year. So much negativity from both sides it has been disheartening. Makes me think of the flu.
I read about a crazy study that involved the researchers gaving people the flu. I remember being pretty broke a few times in my life, but not so broke I would take a few dollars to get the flu.
I hate getting sick. Give me poor and healthy any day.
The researchers studied a group of people over a 6 month period to determine if they were positive thinkers or negative thinkers. If they had more activity in the right prefrontal cortex of their brain (home to anger, fear, sadness), they were considered to be negative thinkers.
If there was more activity in their left prefrontal cortex (home to enthusiasm, feeling upbeat, joy) they were considered to be positive thinkers. Then after the 6 months of studying these subjects, the researchers gave them the flu.
The end result was that the negative thinkers had lower antibodies, so they were more likely to get sick and would stay sicker longer. Makes sense to me. That's why Zig Ziglar calls it Stinkin' Thinkin'.
Seems like the negative thinkers I know are sick a lot more often than the positive thinkers I know. How about in your life? Have you experienced the same thing?
Research has shown that positive thinking can:
-Increase pain tolerance
-Lower blood pressure
-Lower stress levels
-Lead to better relationships
-Increase sleep quality
-Improve memory
-decrease depression
-Make people more likely to eat healthy, exercise, and rest more
That is just to name a few things positive thinking can do for you. You know what the coolest part is?
You alone get to determine your attitude.
I think that is awesome! There are so many things in our lives we have no control over. It is the things that we don’t control that stress us out the most. Weather, our looks, other people (especially on Facebook), and right now presidential elections.
Donald Trump is the president whether that makes you hopeful or hopeless. If you have no control over that, there is no use constantly worrying about it. There is something you can do though.
What can you do to make a more positive impact on the world? Go help others. That is a proven way to make yourself feel more positive about the world.
Start making a conscious effort to become a more positive thinker too. It is like anything else, if you put the focus and energy into changing your thoughts they will change.
Barbara Fredrickson, an expert in positive psychology, recommends a 3 positive thoughts to 1 negative thought ratio. That is your homework this week. Make a conscious effort to have your positive thoughts outweigh your negative thoughts.
