Who's on first - Abbott and Costello
Two Tens for a Five

Power in positive thinking.

I believe that there is power in positive thinking. Positive thinking has the ability to make things happen for a person. If one believes that they will achieve a goal, they would start making decisions to make sure they achieve that goal. Positive thinking alone doesn't have the power to get things done. Many people believe that having a positive attitude and being optimistic brings everything to you. I feel that it's the combination of positive thinking and voluntary actions allows people to achieve goals. For example, an overweight individual can visualize losing weight and becoming thin and convince themselves that it will happen, but if they don't start making changes to their eating habits and lifestyle to make that dream a reality, it will never happen. Thinking positively sets off a chain of reactions that enables a person to change their situation  from a bad one to a good one. It inhibits doubt and fear from deterring one from accomplishing anything they set their sights on. Additionally, it makes a person feel good about what their working for, which provides more encouragement to reach goals. Positive thinking can create a path that helps a person make their dreams come true.

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.

Happiness and Health.

We all know 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? There are ways that being happy can improve one’s health. They say “laughter is the best medicine”, and it some cases it can help improve the way a person feels.

What I'm Grateful for...

There are many things in my life that I’m grateful for. I’m grateful for all the men and women that served in the arm forces to protect the way of life I have now, as if they had not I wouldn’t have written this sentence. I’m grateful that I live in a time that I’m able to receive an education to make my life better. I’m grateful to have people in my life that love and appreciate me, because it gives me the confidence to be myself. I’m grateful that I can see the humor in everyday things so I can enjoy life instead of being miserable. I’m grateful for modern medicine, as I wouldn’t exist if it wasn’t for it. I’m grateful to be in my right mind so I can think freely and have control of my actions. I’m grateful that I have experienced love because I believe that is something that gives life meaning and pleasure. 

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Everyone wants to find love. Everyone feels that there is someone out there that can fulfill that desire. When that person comes along, they form a strong bond of love. This love is a mutual affection between the two people and can generate happiness when this union is formed. But with time, the happiness shared between the couple can decrease because of problems with the relationship. Couples can find ways to cultivate happiness to have a successful relationship. One must first find happiness within oneself in order to find happiness within the relationship. Focusing on the positives of the relationship rather than the negatives can increase happiness. Both partners must be aware of not sacrificing too much of themselves for the other to be happy. One must accept their partner for what kind of person they are to ensure that their relationship is long lasting.

Before trying to cultivate happiness within their relationship, one must find happiness within themselves. It’s very hard to keep a happy relationship if one isn’t happy. This feeling can be caused by unfinished goals, financial problems, or simply having a bad day. People who suffer from this tend to release their negative emotions on their partner just so that they can feel just as bad as they do. Often they would argue over petty things, such as taking out the trash, just to vent out all that they kept bottled up inside. This release can damage the relationship couples have because although one usually doesn’t intentionally mean to hurt the one they love, it really affects them and if this abuse continues, it can destroy the relationship. A person can do the things he loves to keep themselves happy, like reading a book or playing a sport. Taking care of one’s happiness is important because it establishes the mood in the relationship and if a person is happy, they can do positive things in the relationship so the partner will be happy and return the favor.

If a couple maintains a positive environment in within the relationship, happiness is sure to exist. Focusing on the positive aspects of the relationship rather than dwelling on the negative ones can help increase happiness. People around the world have at one point either given or received relationship advice. Most of the advice usually consists of things one shouldn’t do in the relationship. What couples should focus on things they should do in the relationship, like integrating positivity. Darby Saxbe says that positivity “shifts our perspective: while negative emotions shut us down, positive emotions open us up.”(qtd in Saxbe 80).Being positive enables a person to create new ideas to make a good relationship into a better one. It allows you to appreciate the things one’s partner has done for them and gives the chance to connect with them on many different levels. Couples can plan activities that would mean so much more because they would share a memory in which they were happy and felt closer together. They can reflect on those experiences and plan more of them to keep the relationship happy and satisfying.

Couples need to achieve a balance in their relationship so it can be a happier one. Tal Ben-Shahar refers to happiness as “the ultimate currency”, in which everyone’s goal in life is to attain this (qtd in Ben-Shahar 118). He says that “people feel more content, and relationships are more likely to prosper, when both partners see the relationship as equitable.”(qtd in Ben-Shahar 118). Most believe when a person makes sacrifices for someone, it’s because they love them. But when one gives up what makes them happy just to satisfy the other, the relationship is unequal. Although the person does it out of love, in the long run they will feel miserable. When couples see themselves in the relationship as equals, meaning that they are not sacrificing too much of their happiness for the other, it would profit both in the relationship. Neither partner would feel that the other is depriving the other from the things that make them happy and to feel obligated to stay with them because they did so much for them.

Couples need to understand what kind of person their partner is to have a happier relationship. This means that a person needs to be aware of their partner’s core self. Getting to know one’s partner can help connect the couple on many different levels other than a sexual attraction. Couples can disclose their personal goals, hopes and dreams so their partner can be have a deeper understanding what their partner is passionate about and what they fear. This gives meaning for the relationship and if the couple really loves each other, they would help the other accomplish those goals and both feel happy. Tal Ben-Shahar says that “The process of knowing and being known is potentially never ending”, and that “there’s always more to be revealed and discovered” (qtd in Ben-Shahar 120). This process can be like an adventure, finding what their likes and dislikes are can confirm the things they have in common and keep the relationship fresh and exciting. By knowing their partner, couples can then cultivate intimacy by planning activities that are meaningful and pleasurable to their partner as well as themselves. With these activities, the couple can share exciting memories that make them feel good when thinking about it. This can  strengthen their bonds of love and make them feel happy that they are together.

happiness and relationships

Many people mistake sacrifice for love. They see the more they sacrifice for a person, the more love they have for that person.  Some people give up their careers, their dreams, just to make the other happy. I believe that doing this isn’t fair. Sacrificing too much of oneself for the other is not beneficial for one’s happiness. Some may consider this as a true act of love, but I see it as an act of foolishness.

I believe that when it comes to relationships, everything is 50/50. A healthy relationship should consist of each person supporting the other with the intent of looking after their best interests. No one person should give up too much for the other because it can and will hurt them in the long run. When the person one loves decides to terminate the relationship, one is left with a feeling of betrayal because all that sacrifice was for nothing. It’s not only the person leaving, but with them they carry all of one’s hope and dreams, precious time that never be turned. Any person going through that wouldn’t feel happy because they put so much into the relationship and got so little out of it. Emotionally, it can make a person feel hollow inside and hinder a person from finding happiness for a while. Tal Ben-Shahar says that “sacrifice is a person who renounces something that is essential to their happiness”.  Giving up something that makes one happy for the sake of another’s happiness will decrease one’s happiness in the long run. 

A little bit of sacrifice isn’t bad, like one giving away their cat for the sake of the others allergy, because one cares about the well-being of the other without losing as much. The couple should work as a team to have a relationship where meaning and pleasure can be attained by both people. One should never give up their core self for the sake of another’s if they don’t want to lose out on finding happiness. That is similar to trying to change for someone to gain their affection.  People that share a bond of love should accept the other for who they are, and allow the other to be themselves in order to maintain happiness in both people.