Optimism and Health

From Lou Tice:

Do you know how important optimism is when it comes to fighting illness and maintaining good health? It's probably more important than you think.

In fact, it seems like every day a new study is published, reporting solid evidence that the thoughts we think, and the emotions we feel, affect our bodies and our physical health. We now know that the immune system is strengthened by happy, positive feelings of being in control and weakened by chronic anxiety, depression and feelings of helplessness. We don't know exactly how this happens, but there is no
longer any doubt that it does.

We also know that feelings of depression and helplessness are almost always a direct result, not so much of the events that happen to us, but of the way we habitually interpret and respond to those events. In other words, we have learned ways to behave and respond to life that are literally making us sick.

The good news is that since this behavior is learned, it can also be unlearned. It is possible to turn yourself into an optimist by learning techniques that help you control your thoughts, substituting self-esteem building messages, for the negative thoughts.