TriVita Article: Improve Your Emotional Wellness

A growing body of evidence indicates that happy people live longer and enjoy better health along the way.

Express gratitude by sending hand-written thank-you cards to everyone on your Christmas list. Have a picnic with loved ones and express why this person or these people are important to you. Make eye contact – with your spouse, children, friends, people who bag your groceries… everyone! And smile when you do it, even if you don’t feel like it; you’ll lift your own mood and the mood of everyone you see.

Laugh! Read a funny book, or listen to a favorite comedian or routine on tape or CD, and let yourself go. Do this at least once every day. If your mood is down more often than up, and this feeling persists for more than two weeks, contact your doctor for professional help. TriVita’s Emotional Health Coaches can help.

Spend one afternoon assisting children or adults with special needs, or less fortunate people in your town. See how it affects your mood, then think about doing this at least once a month.

Change your self-talk. Spend five minutes a day, one minute at a time, reminding yourself of your best qualities.

Revisit a special place in your past before summertime, whether it’s around the corner or across the country. Visit another place before the end of the year.

Take it easy! Every day this month, give yourself 10 to 15 minutes to sit, relax, and just breathe.

Sing loud, shout it out! Burst into your favorite song, and don’t worry who can hear you. You are alive – celebrate that with a song! Your mood will lift instantly.

Clean out your home of things you don’t need or want and donate them; you get a double benefit of clearing clutter and helping others.

See tomorrows TriVita article on resolutions ideas for your spiritual health.

Source: TriVita VitaJournal January 2006 page 6.