Want a quick easy way to a healthy, joy “buzz?” Try
smiling. The research is there. When we smile we create the biochemical neurotransmitters, Serotonin and Endorphins that trigger feelings of happiness and well
being. Recent studies suggest that our emotions are reinforced, maybe even
created by facial expressions. Smiling is another great example of the
Mind/Body/Spirit connection.
Smiling boost our levels of Serotonin, a neurotransmitter,
which regulates our moods, sleep, sexuality, appetite, and happiness. The
interactive chemical feedback goes both ways. A good mood, restful sleep, good
sex and good food create the smiles that keep the Serotonin pumping, and the
Serotonin creates our good mood feelings.
Smiling releases Endorphins, neurotransmitters, which are
known as the body’s natural painkillers. Endorphins are released during
laughing, exercise, frequent sex, eating chocolate, sunbathing, massages,
meditation, dancing, singing and listening to music.
The more endorphins circulating in the body the more effectively you fight off
symptoms of illness.
Research has shown smiling positively affects our:
Immune strength
Sense of well-being
and positive outlook
Blood Pressure
Balance
Self-control
Resilience against stress
Charles Darwin, in
1872, posed the idea that emotional responses influence our feelings. Darwin
wrote, “The free expression by outward signs of an emotion intensifies it.”
William James, 19th-century psychologist, stated that if a person
does not express an emotion, he has not felt it at all. Current research
suggests emotions involve more than just the brain (Mind). The face (Body), in
particular, appears to plays a big role.
Psychologists,
University of Cardiff in Wales, found individuals with impaired ability to frown;
due to cosmetic botox injections are generally happier, than those who can
frown. Study co-author Michael Lewis reported, “It would appear that the way we
feel emotions isn’t just restricted to our brain—there are parts of our bodies
that help and reinforce the feelings we’re having…It’s like a feedback loop.”
According to a study published in the Journal of Pain (May 2008), people who frown during an unpleasant
procedure report feeling more pain than those who do not. Researcher Lewis
states, “Smiling has widespread mental and physical
health benefits. More than merely an automatic expression of friendliness,
politeness or a good mood, smiling also influences our brain chemistry,
triggering feelings of happiness and pleasure. Even if we feel quite miserable,
we can give ourselves a real boost by smiling. Simply changing our facial
expression can improve how we see ourselves, and the world.”
Although serotonin acts as a natural anti-depressant, does
reshaping our mouth from a frown to a smile create a shift in our sense of
well-being from negative to positive? Guillaume
Duchenne, a pioneering researcher of smiles found that not all smiles are
created equal.
Every culture worldwide recognizes a smile but the “Duchenne
smile” has been proven by science to confer the most powerful, immediate
benefits. Guillaume Duchenne, a 19th century French physician,
acknowledged as one of the founders of modern neurology, discovered a linking
brain function to muscle control and spent years researching the countless emotional
secrets of facial expressions in particular smiles.
The Duchenne smile is defined by the exact muscles
involved in creating it and by identifying the health benefits it confers. He
stated smiles involving the orbicularis oculi muscles (the muscles that pull
your eyes into a squint, making for wrinkles at the bridge of the nose and
around the eyes’ outside edges) were authentic expressions of joy.
Benefits of Smiling:
- Boosts Your Immune System
- Relieves Stress
- Lowers Your Blood Pressure
- Releases Endorphins, Natural Pain Killers and Serotonin
- Makes Us Attractive
- Is Contagious
- Lifts the Face and Makes You Look Younger
- Makes You Seem Successful
- Helps You Stay Positive
The Mind/Body/Spirit
connection leads us to know that life is interactive not just within Self, but
between oneself and others. Each day we have an opportunity to be healers. We
can diminish our own stress---but more than that a contagious smile can
diminish the stress of the person sitting next to you. A smile conveys hope. I
always told my remedial reading students, with a smile on my face---You can
learn this. And they did.
To live a healthy,
empowered life remember the benefits of smiling: 1.) There is an automatic
attraction to people who smile (be on the look out for smiles in return), 2.)
When you are not feeling well smiling releases “happy neurotransmitters and
natural pain killers” there is a chance you will improve your attitude and
change the way you are feel, 3.) Others will want to be with you (we can feel when others genuinely want to be with us),
4.) You will be helping others feel good (How many children could be saved from
drug/alcohol addiction if their parents really smiled at them?), 5.) Smiling
helps us look better, less tired, less worn down, less stressed (“dress for
success” includes your smile), 6.) Stimulates your immune response by
helping you relax, and 7.) There is evidence that your blood pressure can decrease
by smiling (who wants to take liver damaging medication if smiling and a few
lifestyle changes can manage the problem?).
No comments:
Post a Comment