You don’t have to live in San Antonio, TX, to fret about things, worry about things and even to stay up all night with thoughts of things they can’t control. It’s somewhat human nature. In fact, so much so, for centuries, the hierarchy in various religions spent hours learning how to mellow out and focus on the good in the universe. Today, we are finding more and more reasons to develop a happier attitude and positive mental thoughts. It’s not only important for your spirit, it’s important to your overall wellness.
Positive mental thoughts aren’t positive thinking.
There’s a big difference between saying everything is wonderful and you’ll be alright if your house is on fire and you’re sitting in the chair waiting for the firemen, rather than leaving the house and focusing more on positive things than all the negative in your life. You can’t solve problems without looking at what went wrong. However, stressing over it to the point of inactivity or keeping your mind honed into negative things that are out of your control won’t help either. It simply causes stress and stress causes illness.
Uncontrolled anger, fear and worry can raise blood pressure and more.
One of the supplementary treatments for high blood pressure that’s becoming more popular is meditation. Exercise is also another recommendation. Both help relieve stress. Chronic stress creates an imbalance in the body’s hormone levels. It decreases lifespan and shortens the telomeres on the DNA, which prevent damage that causes aging and disease. Stress creates digestive disease and reduces the effectiveness of the immune system and the body’s ability to fight disease.
You don’t have to be out of control to feel the effects of anxiety and depression.
A large group study showed that even mild stress that’s chronic could shorten your life and cause you to be 20% more likely to die in the next ten years. Another study adjusted for pre-existing conditions that were likely to cause a negative attitude and also shorten lifespan. What did the most recent study find? If you remove the people that already had conditions that likely induced stress, adjusted for smoking, pre-existing anxiety and depression, smoking, excessive drinking, weight and exercise as well as health conditions, the study showed that there was a 29% increased risk of people dying from heart disease and stroke earlier with even mild distress. Moderate distress increased that risk to 43% and high stress raised it to 94%
- Combat stress with healthy lifestyle changes. Exercise burns off the hormones of stress, while also lengthening telomeres.
- Find ways of meditating or clearing your mind, such as self-hypnosis, relaxation techniques, and breathing techniques. Even having a pet can lower anxiety levels.
- Take an attitude of gratitude. When you’re focusing on negative, that’s what you’ll see. Wake up each morning and make a mental list of ten things you’re grateful for having in your life.
- Developing a positive attitude helps build strength for tough times. It doesn’t deny hard emotions but builds the strength to know they can overcome the challenges that face them, and it will make them better for having done that.
For more information, contact us today at Iron Fit San Antonio