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How
to Jump-start Your Emotional Health
By Patricia Wagner
You've probably heard
the expression: "It's not what you're
eating. It's what's eating you!" This
well-known saying reminds us that the thoughts
we entertain can have an impact on our health.
Scientists have discovered that what you're
thinking actually affects your physical health
as well as your emotional well-being. Ulcers,
indigestion, nervousness, high blood pressure
and a wide variety of diseases can result from
an injured immune system brought on by harmful
thought patterns.
There are thoughts that heal and thoughts that
hurt.
If you read this article through to the end, you
will discover an effective tool to enhance your
emotional and physical health.
Here are five keys to emotional well-being:
1. Emotions tag right along behind your
thoughts, so guard your mind carefully.
Your emotions can't tell if what you're thinking
about is really happening or if it's just an
image in your head.
Prove this to yourself by thinking back to when
you watched a terrifying scene on television on
in a movie. Even though you knew what you were
watching wasn't actually happening, you were
still scared - weren't you?
Here's something to consider. About ten minutes
after you start to dwell on something,
corresponding emotions will follow.
We are what we eat - both physically and
mentally. Pay close attention to what you're
feeding your mind. The books, television,
movies, newspapers and even the jokes we hear
enter into our lives and become part of us.
So what's eating you? Examine what you're
feeling and then ask yourself this question,
"What have I been thinking about
recently?"
If you have a garbage can for a head, life will
look like garbage to you.
2. Learn to develop a cheerful attitude
toward life.
Life can be painful, but it's possible to
overcome.
Choose to behave in a cheerful way as much as
possible even if you don't feel like it. You may
be surprised at what happens. Cheerfulness is
contagious.
A positive attitude toward life may help ward
off sicknesses. Psychology Professor Sheldon
Cohen (Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh)
found that relaxed, happy people are less prone
to catch colds than unhappy, anxious people.
3. Deal with stress as an opportunity to
grow.
Stress can be a killer.
People who go through stressful events seem to
get sicker more often than those who have less
problems confronting them. But some people
thrive on stress. This tends to show that the
problem is not stress, but how we deal with it.
When we experience times of anxiety and fear,
our brains release hormones as part of the
fight-flight syndrone to prepare us for
dangerous situations. When the body receives too
many of these "danger" messages from
our brains, our disease-resistance systems are
weakened.
Stressful situations seem to cause increased
illnesses in those who consider themselves to be
victims and who react with anxiety and
frustration.
Others consider stressful situations as
opportunities to overcome. So why not choose
this positive approach yourself?
4. Make the right friends.
Select people who are cheerful instead of
depressed for the majority of your friends.
Emotions can be transferred almost by osmosis.
Retired baseball Coach, John Scolinos (from
California Polytechnic College, Pomona), used to
tell his winning baseball players, "Show me
who you're with and I'll tell you who you
are."
We need a positive social life that includes
friends, close family members, churches and
members of organizations.
Those who have satisfying social lives enjoy
improved resistance to illness.
5. Let wisdom from the world's greatest book
be your guide.
"A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a
crushed spirit dries up the bones"
(Proverbs 17:22 NIV).
"All the days of the afflicted are bad, but
a cheerful heart has a continual feast."
(Proverbs 15:15 NASV).
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Want to jump-start your emotional health? Stop
letting what's eating you hurt you and begin to
enjoy life in a brand new way.
About The Author
Patricia Wagner offers informative tips on
living a more energetic lifestyle at http://www.a-to-z-wellness.com.
She is also an artist and you can view her
original paintings at http://www.artbywagner.com.
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