This is Valentine's Day and a time we think of love and what makes us happiest. I have been doing reflection today and have come up with the 10 things that make me the happiest.
1. First and foremost is love. I am most fortunate to have a loving husband, children and grandchildren as well as a lot of people that really care about me and I in turn care about them.
2. Good health. Life is tough if you don't have it.
3. Coffee. Yes, coffee and this is buzzworthy. Women who sipped 2 to 3 cups of coffee a day were 15% less likely to exhibit signs of depression than those who had little and that is from a study at Harvard University. Caffeine helps regulate mood-balancing brain chemicals and it certainly is most enjoyable and makes me perky. .... and shhhhhhh! this is preliminary ... but there are rumours afoot that caffeine could one day be used topically to destroy cancer-causing cells... but hold off on the coffee bath just yet. But I do love my coffee.
4. Chocolate! I have talked about this before on the benefits of small amounts of dark chocolate daily. It not only has flavanoids but other health benefits as well as mood benefits. No wonder it is a mainstay on Valentine's Day. It gives you the feeling of love.
5. Perfume! Not so surprising because smelling nice is part of feeling good. I never leave home without it and I like a man to smell good too. Doesn't everybody?
6. Red and Pink. I sit here at my computer wearing a red cashmere sweater, red crystal beads and a ruby ring. Warm colours like red and pink are happy colours.
7. Fresh flowers. We are seduced by our senses. Things that are pretty and smell good make us feel good too.
8. Volunteering.... and not necessarily in this order that I have given. I am paraphrasing a Dr. Oz quote when I say the worth of a person can be measured in how they help people that are less fortunate. People who pitch in for a group they truly care about have a lower mortality rate than those who volunteer purely for personal gain (e.g. it will look good on my resume) Health Psychology notes. Feeling invested may trigger the release of the bonding hormone oxytocin, which could prevent stress-related illness. Interesting, isn't it. So give to yourself and to others too by following your heart.
9. Smiling. There are 5 really good reasons to smile (right now!) First of all, you'll feel sexier. People rate faces regardless of physical characteristics with beaming smiles as more attractive than those with not-so-big grins. Secondly, you will be in a cheery mood. It raises the corners of your mouth and it's a major mood-boosting benefit. Thirdly, you will have healthier relationships. Reams of research proves that smilers have an easier time making friends. Number four is you will look fitter. It is true that people with white and aligned teeth are considered more athletic and than those with bad teeth. And, Number five and most importantly is you will live longer. Those who had the biggest smiles lived, on average, seven years longer than their stoic counterparts did, a study in Psychological Science shows. That is something to smile about. As well, it will help you not take yourself too seriously.
10. and lastly. 5HTP. I swear by it. I started taking it nightly before bed when my chiropractor, Dr. Mark Scappaticci, recommended it when I was taking on everyone else's problems and it really brought me down. What is it, you may ask. It is a natural capsule from the Health Food Store or now in some Pharmacies. It promotes healthy mood balance and keeps away the demons.
Those are my 10 ingredients for my recipe for happiness. Happy Valentine's Day and here is wishing you everything that brings joy to your heart!
No comments:
Post a Comment