A Postive Mental Attitude is Critical for Optimal Health

8/6/2019 A Postive Mental Attitude is Critical for Optimal Health

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Well and Wise: A

Positive Mental

Attitude is Criticalfor Optimal Health

Keith J. Karren, PhD

Dep t. of Hea lth Sc ienc e



Ideas from Authentic Happiness-Martin Seligman PhD.

• Positive emotion has a p rofound

purpose fa r beyond the d elightfulway it makes us feel.

• Positive emotions have a grandpurpose in evolution. They b roadenour ab id ing inte llec tua l, physic a l, and

soc ia l-resourc es, build ing up reserveswe c an d raw upon when a threa t oropportunity presents itself.




• When we a re in a posit ive mood ,

peop le like us better, andfriend ship , love, and c oa litions a remore likely to c ement. In c ontrastto the c onstric tions of nega tiveemotion, our menta l set is

expansive, to lerant, and c rea tive.We a re open to new ideas andnew experience.




• Hea lth and longevity a re g ood ind ic a tors

of physic a l reserve, and there is d irec tevidenc e tha t positive emotion pred ic tshea lth and longevity. In the la rgest stud yto da te, 2,282 Mexic an-Americ ans from thesouthwest United Sta ts aged sixty-five orolder were g iven a ba ttery ofdemographic and emotional tests, then

trac ked for two years. Positive emotionstrongly pred ic ted who lived and whod ied , as well as d isab ility.




• After c ontrolling for age, inc ome, educa tion,

weight, smoking , d rinking , and d isease, theresea rc hers found that happy peop le wereha lf as likely to d ie, and ha lf as likely tobec ome d isab led . Positive emotion a lsoprotec ts peop le aga inst the ravages of ag ing.You will rec a ll tha t beg inning nuns who wrotehappy autob iographies when in their twentieslived longer and hea lthier lives than novic eswhose autob iographies were devo id ofpositive emotion, and a lso tha t op timists in theMayo Clinic stud y lived signific antly longerthan pessimists.




• You will rec a ll that beg inning nuns

who wrote happy autob iog raphieswhen in their twenties lived longerand hea lthier lives than novic eswhose autob iographies weredevoid of positive emotion, and

a lso tha t op timists in the MayoClinic study lived signific antlylonger than pessimists.




• Happy peop le, furthermore have better

hea lth hab its, lower b lood p ressure, andfeistier immune systems tha n less ha ppypeop le. When you comb ine a ll this with

Asp inwa ll’ s find ings that happy peop leseek out a nd absorb more hea lth riskinformation, it adds up to an

unambiguous p ic ture of happ iness as aprolonger of life and improver of hea lth.




• Not only do hap py peop le endure pa in better

and take more hea lth and sa fety p rec autionswhen threa tened but positive emotions undo neg a tive emotions.

• There are many stud ies tha t c orrela te positivity

with la ter hea lth, longevity, soc iab ility andsucc ess the ba lanc e of the evidenc e suggeststha t in some situa tions nega tive thinking leadsto more ac c urac y. Where ac c urac y is tied topotentia lly c a tastrophic outcomes (forexample, when an a irp lane p ilot is dec id ingwhether to de-ic e the wings of her a irp lane)we should a ll be pessimists.



Ideas from Molecules of Emotion- Candice D. Pert, Ph.D

• The bod y and mind a re not separa te

but rea lly one system c oord ina ted bythe molec ules of emotion.• For most of us, the very words healthy

lifestyle c onjure up images of low-fat

mea ls, da ily exerc ise reg imens, and theelimination fo a lc ohol, tobac c o andrec rea tiona l d rugs. While these a re a llgood , hea lth-enhanc ing stra teg ies –

and I’ ll have something to say aboutthem from the p oint of view of thepep tiderg ic network –



Ideas from Molecules of Emotion

- Candice D. Pert, Ph.D

• wha t’ s missing for most of us is any foc us

on ongoing, da ily emotiona l self-c a re.We tend to d ea l with the p hysic a laspec ts of keep ing ourselves hea lthand ignore the emotiona l d imension –

our thoughts and feelings, even oursp irits, our souls.• Yet, in light of the new knowled ge

about emotions and the p sychosomatic

network, it’ s obvious tha t they, too, a rea part of our responsib ility to manageour own hea lth.





• The tendency to ignore our emotions is

oldthink , a remnant of the still-reigningparad igm tha t keeps us foc used on themateria l level of hea lth, the physic a lity of it.

• But the emotions a re a key element in self-

c a re bec ause they allow us to enter into thebodymind ’s c onversa tion. By getting in touchwith our emotions, both by listening to themand by d irec ting them through thepsyc hosomatic network, we c an ga in ac c essto the hea ling wisdom tha t is everyone’sna tura l b iolog ic a l right.





• For me, the key conc ep t is tha t the

emotions exist in the body asinformationa l c hemic a ls, theneuropeptides and rec ep tors, and theya lso exist in another rea lm, the one we

experienc e as feeling , insp ira tion, love – beyond the p hysic a l.

• The emotions move bac k and forth,

flowing freely between both plac es andin tha t sense, they connec t the physic a land nonp hysic a l.





• Perhaps this is the same thing tha t

Eastern hea lers c a ll the sub tle energy, orprana – the c irc ula tion of emotionaland sp iritua l information throughout the

bod ymind. We know that the wayhea lth oc c urs in the physic a l body hasto do with the flow of the b ioc hemic a ls

of emotion. My work has taught metha t there is a physic a l rea lity to theemotions.



THE POWER OF

BELIEF



Bec ause beliefs and emotions a rela rgely ep hemera l and

imperc ep tib le, Western med ic ine

has la rgely assumed tha t theireffec ts a re nor physic a l or

measurab le. Western med ic a l

sc ienc e, in its passion to reservelife, has neg lec ted the motiva tionstha t d rive us, the meaning of life

tha t makes peop le thirst for hea lthand longevity.



Every day, whether we know it or not, wea lter our b ra in c hemistry. We do this

through what we eat, what we do, andwhat we think. These c ha nges in b ra in

c hemistry c ause transformations in mood and intellec tua l performance

tha t range from the subtle to the

profound . As sc ienc e has p roven, if wec hange the c ond ition of the b ra in’sneurons and c hemistry, our thoughtsand emotions c hange. The reverse is

a lso true: c hange our thoughts and emotions, and the c hemic a ls within our

b ra ins a re a lso c hanged .



Thoughts and ideas tha t a re

ma inta ined c onsistently over timec ause c hanges in b ra in c hemistryand func tion. We a re shaped by

what we think – espec ia lly if wethink those thoughts c onsistently

over a long enough period of time.



One of the sec rets to making long-termc hanges in b ra in c hemistry is through

c onsistent types of thinking – op timism,for example, or fa ith. Certa in da ily

p rac tic es suc h as med ita tion, p rayer

and relaxa tion exerc ises, c an fosterthese long-term, positive c hanges inbiochemistry. In The Three Pound

Universe , by Jud ith Hooper and Dic k

Teresi, they say tha t thoug hts, “ c a ll the p lays, exerting downward c ontrol over

the marc h of nerve-impulse tra ffic .”



The root meaning of hea lth is

“ wholeness” . The word hea lth c omesfrom the same Ang lo-Saxon root tha tg ives us whole, ha le, and ho ly.

Western med ic a l doc tors have narrowedtheir view of hea lth and pay most

a ttention to the physic a l body and the

materia l aspec ts of illness. Manydoc tors would define hea lth as the

absenc e of d isease

What is Health?



With the emergenc e of Complementa ryand Alternative med ic ine (whic h I

p refer to refer to as Integra tiveMed ic ine), sp iritua l and relig iousinfluenc es upon hea lth have re-

emerged as important fac tors forsc ientific inq uiry. I say re-emerged

bec ause throughout history, hea lerswere o ften the triba l or c ommunityleaders tha t were relig ious figures.

Hea lth is now being embrac ed as adynamic and harmonious equilib rium of a ll the elements and forc es making up

and surrounding a huma n being.



The Mind is a PowerfulDeterminant of our Health

In many ways this new view is ha rdersinc e it is not c lea rly measurab le.But we c an no longer ignore the

huge body of researc h that isshowing us a new way of

understand ing our hea lth



A new b ranch of med ic a l resea rc h beganin the 1970’s whic h b egan the sc ientific

study of how the mind and emotions(psyche), the b ra in a nd nervous system

(neuro) and the body’s c ellula r defensesabnorma l inva ders (immune system)

interac t in hea lth and d isease. Thisb ranch of med ic a l researc h is known as

psychoneuroimmunology (PNI). This

p roves to us wha t many have intuitivelyknown.



Psyc honeuroimmunology shows ustha t there is a b ioc hemic a l basis toour beliefs, thoughts, emotions, self

image and expec ta tions whic himpac ts, physic a lly every c ell in ourbody.



TOP TEN TIPS FOR

MIND/BODY HEALTH

1. Your body is your subc onsc ious

mind.2. Your thoughts, beliefs and

emotions have b ioc hemic a leffec ts in your body.

3. Op timists live longer

4. soc ia l c onnec tions lower your riskof dying a t any age.



5. Humility is linked to lower heart d iseaserisk and better rela tionships

6. Laughter is good med ic ine

7. How well you THINK you a re is a strongpred ic to r of your d isease risk

8. Music has powerful hea ling p rop erties

9. Group therapy c an inc rease lifeexpec tanc y in pa tients with severeillness

10. Your mind is loc a ted in every cell ofyour body… be c areful, your body islistening!



Supportive of Health

and Well-Being

• Ba lanced Diet• Da ily and weekly exerc ise

• Time for fun, play andlaughter

• Music , sonic s, andchanting

• Love, touch and support

systems• Enga ged in interests,

hob b ies, and c rea tivepurpose

• Nature , beauty, and

hea ling environments• The presenc e of faith and

belief in the superna tura l

• Unb a la nc ed d iet• Lac k of exerc ise

• Loss of humor and lac kof fun

• Lac k of music , sonic s andchanting

• Lac k o f love, touch and

sup port systems• Lac k of interests,

hob b ies, and c rea tivepurpose

• Lac k of nature, beauty

and hea lingenvironments• Lac k of fa ith and belief in

the superna tura l

Non-Supportive ofHealth and Well-Being



ATTITUDEThe longer I live, the more I rea lize the impac t o f

a ttitude on life. Att itude, to me, is more important

than fac ts. It is more important than the past, thaned uca tion, than money, than c irc umstances, thanfa ilures, than suc c esses, than what other peop le thinkor say or do. It is more important than appearance,g iftedness, or skill. It will make or b reak a c ompany...

a c hurc h... a home. The remarkab le thing is we havea c hoice every day regard ing the a ttitude we willembrac e for that day. We cannot change our past...we c annot c hange the fac t tha t peop le w ill ac t in ac erta in way. We c annot change the inevitab le. The

only thing we c an do is p lay on the one string wehave, and that is our a ttitude... I am c onvinced thatlife in 10% wha t ha ppens to me & 90% how I reac t toit. So it is with you, we a re in cha rge o f our a ttitud es.



The Hea lingPower of

OptimismEvery good thought you think is

contributing its share to the ultimate result of your life.”

-Grenville Kleiser



What is Op timism?• Op timism is “ an inc lination to a ntic ipa te

the best possib le outc ome.• Ornstein & Sobel:

– Op timism is “ the tendenc y to seek out,remember, and expec t p lea surab le

experienc es. It is an a c tive priority o f theperson, not merely a reflex tha t p rompts usto ‘ look on the sunny side.’

• Op timists live longer and they probab lyenjoy better hea lth a long the way aswell.



How Optimism Influenc es Hea lth

• Norman Cousins:

– Diagnosed with ankylosing spondylitis. – Fought bac k, using a number of fac tors

(suc h as nutrition, op timism, and laughter)to overc ome his d isease

– “ Laughter p layed a part, of c ourse, butlaughter was a metaphor for the full rangeof positive emotions—hope, fa ith, love,determination, c onfidence—all the things

that a re p art of the a b ility of the humanmind to get the most out of whatever ispossible.




• Evidence g ives inc reasing c red ib ility to

the idea tha t op timism and positiveemotions p romote hea lth.

• Lazarus: – “ positive denia l” helps up keep hopes up,

susta ins mora le, improves hea lth, andreduc es anxiety.

• A positive a ttitude a nd belief in the

body’s own hea ling ab ilities c anc erta inly supp lement med ic a ltrea tment, but should never rep lac e it.




• Cousins & Siegel:

– The best possib le outc ome results whenop timism and positive thinking work hand-in-hand with the med ic a l trea tment offeredby c ompetent physic ians.

• Petersen and Va illant

– Harvard graduates, men who were themost op timistic in the ir orig ina l writings ha d

the best hea lth fo rty years la ter.




• Peterson

– pessimistic students were ill tw ic e asmany days and had four times as any

doc tor visits over the c ourse of a year

c ompared with op timistic students. – “ This suggests tha t how we view

things may d irec tly affec t our immune

system.”



Optimists and Longevity• Physiolog ic a l reason why op timists live

longer lies in a c omp lex set o f“ messages” that the mind sends to thebody.

• Optimists g ive c onsistent “ live”messages to the b ody – and live longer.

• Peop le w ith a c heerful outlook on life

genera lly get to enjoy life longer.



Ways to Boost your Op timism• Rea lize you may need to ma ke a

lifestyle c hange• Start sma ll by choosing one a rea of yourlife

• Take a good , hard , c ritic a l look a t yourbeliefs about yourself

• Set goa ls that a re sma ll enough toac hieve quic kly

• Seek out op timistic peop le

• “ Play” a t being op timistic



Positive psychology, a field whose goa l is to c hange

the foc us from what c auses a troub led mind towhat causes a happy one, c ontends tha t op timists

a re better off tha t pessimists. In heart d isease, inpartic ula r, researc h has shown tha t op timism hasbeen assoc ia ted with a lowered risk of dying. In

one study, pa tients who desc ribed themselves ashighly op timistic had lower risks of a ll-c ause dea th

and lower ra tes of ca rd iova sc ular dea th thanthose with high leve ls of pessimism. Research fromthe Harvard Sc hool of Pub lic Hea lth showed tha t

op timism lowers the risk of heart d isease in o ldermen and tha t pessimism and hopelessnessinc rease it. And University of Pittsburgh researc hershave rep orted that op timistic women d emonstra te

less thickening of the c a rotid a rtery wa lls.

Not tha t being positive is simp le or easy – it requiresc onsiderab le effort. One way to c ultiva te it is by

prac tic ing gra titude.



Those who a re gra te ful for their b lessing s,and g ive thanks for their good fortune

ra ter tha n dwelling on their misfortunes,

a re genera lly hea lthier and happ ier.Being gra teful has helped c rea te theirhappiness.

Gra tefulness has long been hera lded as avirtue essentia l for hea lth and well-being .Researc h now suggests tha t it a lso a llowspeop le to dea l better with stress, c ausing

them to be more op timistic , whic h seemsto boost immune func tion.



Stud ies have shown tha t those who fa il to forg ivewrongs c ommitted to them have more stress-

rela ted d isorders and worse ra tes ofc a rd iovasc ula r d isease than the p opula tion as awhole. Those who rec eived forg iveness tra ining

showed improved b lood flow to their hea rtmusc le. Forg iveness seems to reduc e b itterness,anger, hatred , and fea r.

Ma ny of my depressed pa tients have b eengnawing on the b ones of past g rieva nces for

years.Ma rianne Williamson says: “ We a re not he ld bac k

by the love we d idn’ t rec eive in the past, but bythe love we’ re not extend ing in the p resent.”

Forg iveness, op timism, gra titude a re inc reasing lysub jec ts for serious sc ientific investiga tion, asmuch a p a rt of the hea rt d isease equation as

b lood c holesterol levels.



“ The hea rt has a mind tha t some might c a ll thesp irit, the higher self, intuition or the sma ll vo ic ewithin. How many times have you sa id to

yourself ‘ if only I had listened to my hea rt.’ By

not listening, we often pay a p ric e in time andenergy in c leaning up the mess a fterward .”This ac c ord ing to Rolin Mc Cra ty, who stud iesthe physiolog ic a l mec hanisms by whic h the

hea rt c ommunic a tes with the bra in.Over the yea rs, Hea rtMa th has c onduc tedresearc h va lida ting the power of the heart inrelieving stress and p romoting hea lth. They’ve

formula ted p rac tic a l interventions tha tincorpora te the understand ing that the hea rtp rofound ly a ffec ts our perc ep tions,

awareness, and inte lligenc e.



Aaron Antonovsky writes “ We’ ve c ome tounderstand hea lth not as the a bsence of

d isease but ra ther as the p roc ess by whic h

ind ividua ls ma inta in the ir sense ofc oherenc e – their sense tha t life isc omprehensib le, managea b le, and

meaningful – and ab ility to func tion in the

fac e of changes in themselves and theirrela tionships with their environment.

A key find ing of HeartMath researc h is tha t aspeop le lea rn to susta in heart-foc used

positive sta tes of feeling , the b ra in isb rought into “ entra inment” with the heart.



EFFECTIVEEDUCATION



The Power of Positive Thinking

• Key Point

– You a re wha t you think. You feel what you wa nt.



The Power of Positive Thinking• Why Think Positively?

– “Most folks are about as happy as they make up their minds tobe.” Abraham Lincoln

– Our present attitudes are habits, built from the

feedback of parents, friends, society and self, that form

our self-image and our world image. These attitudesare maintained by the inner conversations we

constantly have with ourselves, both consciously and

subconsciously.

– The first step in changing our attitudes is to change our

inner conversations.




• What Should We Be Saying?

– One approach is called the three C’s:

• Commitment

• Control

• Challenge




Commitment

–Make a positive commitment to

yourself, to learning, work, family,

friends, nature, and other worthwhile causes. Praise yourself

and others. Dream of success. Be

enthusiastic.



The Power of Positive ThinkingControl

– Keep your mind focused on importantthings. Set goals and priorities for what

you think and do. Visualize to practice

your actions. Develop a strategy for

dealing with problems. Learn to relax.

Enjoy successes. Be honest with

yourself.



The Power of Positive Thinking• Commitment, Control, and Challenge

– Studies show that people with these characteristics are winners in good times and survivors in hard times.

– Research shows that, “…people who begin consciously

to modify their inner conversations and assumptions

report an almost immediate improvement in theirperformance. Their energy increases and things seem

to go better…”

– C,C, & C help build self-esteem and promote positivethinking.



The Power of Positive Thinking• Suggestions for Building Positive Attitudes

– In every class, look for positive people to associate with.

– In every lecture, look for one more interesting idea.

– In every chapter, find one more concept important to you.

– With every friend, explain a new idea you’ve just learned.

– With every teacher, ask a question.

– With yourself, keep a list of your goals, positive thoughts andactions.

– Remember, you are what you think, you feel what you want.



Benefits: Be an optimist• Improve your mood , self-esteem,

and overa ll happ iness• Dec rease depression, anxiety, and

hostility

• Lessen pa in and other bod ilysymptoms

• Speed rec overy from surgery

• Enhanc e your immune func tion

• Possib ly extend your life



• We a re c onstantly ta lking toourselves. This “ self-ta lk” is how weexp la in the events of our lives toourselves. And it is the way weinterp ret these externa l events in

our minds tha t d etermines how wefeel, and determines what ac tionswe dec ide to take.



• You bec ome a p risoner of yourown beliefs. But the wa lls of ourp rison a re made of thoughts, andthoughts c an be c hanged . Self-ta lk is not something fixed in our

b io logy, and our feelings a re noc omp letely out of our c ontrol.New, hea lthier thoughts c an be

cultivated.



Try Rose Colored Glasses• “ Sometimes you just need to look rea lity

in the eye a nd deny it.” – Garrison Keillor

• Hea lthy thinkers see the world through

rose-colored lenses. They d istort theirrea lity in a positive d irec tion, and mostof the time the ir rosy illusions benefitthem. Healthy thinking is not nec essarilymore rea listic ; it’ s just hea lthier.



What makes an optimist?• Be selec tive, remember ma inly the

positive events in the past.• Foc us on the p resent.

• See the future in terms of wha t can be

done instead of wha t can’ t happen• See threa ts as c hallenges – prob lems

c an be solved

• Believe the world is c oherent, and theirac tions make a signific ant d ifferenc e.



Optimist and Pessimist Self Talk• Op timists see setb ac ks as

temporary: – My da ughter and I fought

bec ause she was in a bad

mood . – I wa s exhausted a t the time.

• Op timists see fa ilure oradversity a s spec ific to theimmed ia te prob lem: – I was nervous about g iving

the speec h bec ause the aud ienc e wa s so la rge

– I’m no t a very good skier

• Op timists exp la in ba d eventsin terms of exte rna l c auses: – I c aused a fender bender

bec ause tra ffic d istrac ted me – I never go t a g ood ed uca tion

• Pessimists see setb acks aspermanent: – My daughter and I never ge t

a long no ma tter wha t I do. – Things never work out for me.

• Pessimists genera lize theprob lem to their whole life: – I was nervous about g iving

the speec h bec ause I a lwa ys mess it up

– I’m no t a t a ll a thlet ic

• Pessimists expla in bad eventsby blaming themselves: – I c aused a fender bender

bec ause I’m a lousy driver – I’m stup id



What the Research Shows• Confidenc e Counts

– Changing the way you think is one of thebest things you can do to enhance hea lth.Researc h suggests tha t positive thinking -op timism, c onfidenc e, and a sense of

c ontrol-has very positive hea lth benefits. Itc an affec t your immune system, yoursusc eptib ility to d isease, and perhaps evenyour life span. Here a re some stud ies tha t

demonstra te the power op timistic thinking:



Optimism and Immunity• In one study, researc hers

measured c hemic a l substanc es insa liva tha t p rotec t us frominfec tions like c olds. Immunity was

higher on days when p eop le feltpositive about their lives tha n ondays when they felt down.



Optimism and Immunity• Blood samp les were taken from

both op timistic and neg a tivepeop le. The op timists had a higherra tio of d isease-fighting “ helper”

immune c ells to “ sup pressor”immune c ells than the pessimists.



Optimism and Cancer• Mic e a nd ra ts were imp lanted with

tumors in severa l stud ies, and g ivenelec tric shoc ks. The ones whofought the tumors more

suc c essfully were those who c ouldturn off the shoc k by p ressing abar. This gave them some c ontrol

over a stressful situa tion.



Optimism and Cancer• Confidenc e a nd op timism a lso

appear to help those fac ing life-threa tening d iseases. Women whohad a sec ond oc c urrence of

b reast c anc er survived longer ifthey felt joy in living , and ta lked tothemselves optimistically.



Optimism and Cancer• There is evidenc e that peop le c an lea rn

to think more positively, and so improvetheir physic a l hea lth. For examp le, onegroup of pa tients with cancer weretaught more c onstruc tive thinkingha b its. They a lso rec eived relaxa tiontra ining . These pa tients’ na tura l killerc ells showed muc h higher ac tivity than

pa tients who rec eived simila r med ic a ltrea tment, but no c ounseling.



Attitude Affects Longevity• In one study, seniors who believed

they were in “ poor” hea lth werenearly three times more likely to d iewithin seven years than those who

ra ted their hea lth a s “ exc ellent.”The self-ra tings more ac c ura te lyp red ic ted who would d ie than the

doc tors’ ob jec tive reports.



Attitude Affects Longevity• Peop le who thought they were in poor

hea lth (desp ite the fac t that theirdoc tors had g iven them a c lea n b ill ofhea lth) had a slightly grea ter risk ofdying sooner tha n hea lth op timists.Those who saw themselves as well(even though doc tor’ s reportssuggested that they had poor hea lth)

lived slightly longer.



Attitude Affects Longevity• Even a sense of c ontrol over minor

da ily events c an improve hea lth.Nursing home residents who wereg iven a c hoic e o f wha t to have forb reakfast or wha t night to see amovie were happ ier and moreac tive. After 18 months, they hadha lf the d ea th ra te of those notoffered as much c ontrol.



Beliefs Become Biology• Bec ause op timists a re more ac tive

than pessimists, they a re more likelyto do something for their hea lth(go to the d oc tor, c hange theird iet, or exerc ise). Op timists maya lso be more ac tive than otherpeop le in seeking out support-another fac tor that’ s been shownto p romote hea lth.



Beliefs Become Biology• We don’ t yet understand exac tly how

optimistic thinking transla tes into betterhea lth. but we do know tha t thoughtdetermine moods, and moods reflec tc hanges in both hormonal ac tivity and

immune func tion. however it works, theevidenc e c lea rly shows tha t it’ sworthwhile to lea rn to think as

op timistic a lly as possib le.



How to Think in a Healthier Way• Inac c ura te thoughts c an be

c ha llenged and c hanged .• Trac k your Thoughts – Rec ognizing unhelp ful nega tive

thoughts is the first step to stopp ingthem.

• Question Pessimistic Self-Ta lk

– Have I rea lly identified what’ sbothering me?



Healthy Negative Feelings• Life is not only about thinking

positive, happy thoughts.Emotions, both positive andnega tive, g ive texture and

meaning to life. There are timeswhen nega tive fee lings a rehea lthy and appropria te.

• Am I expec ting perfec tion?



Uncover Your Core Beliefs• You can lea rn a lot by identifying

the deeper beliefs tha t g ive rise toyour nega tive self-ta lk.



The Limits of Optimism• Sometimes b iolog ic a l fac tors

domina te, and no a mount ofpositive thinking will reverse them.Still, op timistic thinking c an help

you to p revent some illnesses, andc ope better with others.



The Limits of Optimism• Hea lthy thinking may not p rolong

your surviva l, but it c an help youmaximize your hea lth a ndfunc tioning in the meantime.

• You might find yourself up aga instan entirely unreasonab le belieftha t nothing short o f perfec tion is

acceptable.



The Limits of Optimism• Remember tha t mistakes a ren’ t

fa ilures. They’ re good to lea rnfrom. Mista kes g ive you thec hance to rehea rse other ways of

hand ling things. This is g rea tp rac tic e for future c risis.



How to Think in a Healthier Way• Cha llenge Your “ Shoulds”

– Underlying beliefs often invo lve theword “ should .”

• Get a Sense of Control

– It refers to the belief that you c ana lways have some impac t on yoursitua tion, and some degree of

choice.



How to Think in a Healthier Way• Ac t as if...

– By ac ting as if something good weretrue, you c an genera te positive

feelings and thoughts.

• Be mind ful – Set a side some time to simp ly observe

your thoughts, without trying to

c hange them.



Well and Wise

A Positive Menta l Attitude Is Critic a lFor Op tima l Hea lth

Keith J. Karren, PhD

Dept. of Hea lth Sc ienc e

A Postive Mental Attitude is Critical for Optimal Health

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