happiness and health

It has been proven that being unhappy can make someone sick. Having feelings of anxiety, depression can lower one’s immune defenses and leave them susceptible to illness, or if one’s already ill can make them feel worse. But can the opposite be true? Happiness and other positive emotions can increase one’s health. Those who partake in laughter can benefit from its positive effects on the body. Being optimistic can change one’s outlook on life and promote well being. Showing gratitude can provide benefits to one’s mind, body and soul. These emotions can  help one  live a happy, healthy, more fulfilling life.

They say that laughter is the best medicine. Having a good laugh can elevate one’s mood and change one’s perception of a situation. This action can bring people together so they can have a good time, like watching a funny movie or sharing a joke among friends. Throughout the day, one can hear laughter all round them, on the train, at school or work and it can be very contagious. Once someone lets the giggles out, they send out a wave of good feelings that others may pick up to let them know that they’re taking time to enjoy the humor in life and it’s usually a sign that the person is feeling happy. Laughter can not only make a person feel good, it can also be good for them. This mood enhancer can affect one’s immune system in a positive way, as it promotes the production of white blood cell and antibodies, cells that fight and ward off infection and illnesses. Laughing can decrease one’s blood pressure, which can benefit those suffering from hypertension. Lee Berk refers to laughter as a form of “internal jogging”, as it increases heart rate, allowing more blood to circulate and improves lung function thus allowing more oxygen into the blood, just like real jogging (qtd in Kluger 25).Stress hormones play a big role in one’s health because high levels of stress can trigger many problems in their body. Laughter can reduce these stress hormones that have been building up within a person throughout their day and can help promote mental and physical relaxation. Madan Kataria stated that “even if you laugh for the sake of laughing, even if you pretend laughing, your body cannot tell the difference” (qtd in Kathchadourian 80). People laugh for different reasons. Some people laugh when they’re feeling nervous, excited, or out of fear. It doesn’t matter how a person laughs or what triggers the laughter, because a person will still receive the benefits of laughing, whether it’s a real laugh or a fake one.

The way a person thinks can have a significant effect on their health and well being. Negative thinking weakens a person’s immune response to ailments, which leads to them being sick longer and have slower recovery rate. Depression and other negative emotions limit the way a person functions, as they cause the stress hormones in the body to increase and cause it harm. Positive thinking can have an inverse affect on the body. Thinking positive causes a person to have an optimistic view on life. This optimism allows a person to cope with the hardships they come across in life, and helps reduce stress. Since positive thinking reduces stress hormones, it enables the immune system to function properly to keep a person from getting sick. It also helps people recover faster from surgery and sicknesses like influenza, because if one believes that they will never get better, they will have harder time recovering from their illness. Optimism can help a person change a negative point of view to a positive. Instead of a person wallow in self-pity because they failed at something, positive thinking would help them learn from their mistakes and guide them to a path of success. They change their “can’t do” attitude into a “can do” attitude. Martin Seligman developed a “happiness formula” in which voluntary action was a component of happiness (qtd in Chopra).Positive thinking influences a person to make the right choices to take care of themselves. A positive thinker has a winners’ mentality and is determined to overcome anything and everything to reach their goals, because they believe they can.

Being grateful can cause a person’s health to get better. When one is grateful, one appreciates the value of the things in life, like their lives, and would start to do things to take better care of themselves. Having gratitude enables a person to pay attention to the positive parts in their lives, rather than focus on the negatives. Doing that keeps them from being stressed out and allows them to experience joy in life. Showing gratitude for others allow them to be intimate with the ones they love and feel loved. It creates an environment filled with positive emotions, in which the body responds with feelings of calmness and tranquility, essential for well-being. Gratitude helps one to experience happiness and realize that life is worthwhile.

Sonja Lyubomirsky states the “nearly every aspect of health seems to be affected by happiness” (qtd in Chopra). People that are happy usually are high in spirits, have good physical and mental well being, and have healthy immune function. They are able to enjoy life to the fullest, because they don’t let the stress they deal with get to them. They will try to find a way to put a positive spin on any negative situation, and it allows them to deal with it better. Having a good laugh, thinking positively, and being grateful can help one to not take everything life so seriously and to have a sense of peace. If a person spends most of their time worrying and stressing out, they will miss out on the many wonders life has to offer and live miserable lives. If one can keep themselves in a constant state of happiness, they can live a long healthy life.