Optimism
“A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.”
WINSTON CHURCHILL
Many of us consider challenges to be obstacles that keep us from the things we want. Those of us who are optimists tend to see the opportunity in those obstacles. In other words, an optimist will always believe that there is something positive to be gained regardless of the situation. An optimist will look for and find alternate solutions to problems, which can be satisfying and quite empowering.
If we take this statement to heart, we can see that optimism has many deeper applications than simply creating a good mood. Imagine how this positive outlook could help change how we view our own health. As discussed in earlier chapters, stress is a part of life, but what if we could use optimism as an added tool to deal with stress? What if by simply changing how we approach the stressors in our lives we could affect the toll stress takes on our bodies?
As we try to find tools for ourselves and our patients, optimism is a tool that is powerful, yet so often underutilized. Many people are optimistic when things are going well, such as when they have good health. But they find being optimistic difficult when their health is poor. Many think optimism is genetic, that you are born with a fixed outlook. You either have it or you don’t. People often say, “Well, this is just how I was born” or “I can’t change how I feel.” But research shows that although there is a genetic component, optimism can also be cultivated, grown, and expanded.1
Can Optimism Improve Health?
A meta-analysis of 83 studies showed optimism, as well as reduced rates of depression and heart disease, were associated with improved health outcomes in cancer and pregnancy.1,2,3 Optimists are found to be more resilient to stress, and newer research suggests a link between optimism and increased lifespan!4,5
A potential reason for these improvements is that optimists make better lifestyle choices—they eat better and exercise more, they have more coping strategies to get through times of hardship, and they have more problem-solving capability to overcome adversity. All this information compels us to find ways to increase our optimism and make it another valuable tool for health! Let’s look deeper at this.
How Do We Become Optimists?
You may be thinking, “Well, this is all well and good. But wanting to have positive emotions and social connectedness is one thing. Actually, having them is totally another.” So how do we work on these positive thoughts? How do we improve optimism? In his book Learned Optimism, Martin Seligman, PhD, a pioneer in the field of positive psychology, gives many pointers to help us become more optimistic. He discusses practical exercises to decrease negative self-talk and challenges the way we view negative thoughts and beliefs. He teaches us to cultivate gratitude and positive emotions by actively shifting our minds from looking at the negative to finding the positive in any situation.
CONSIDER 1
Self-talk is that voice in our head that is always criticizing us. Can we learn to make that voice go away?
How do we build lasting benefits from these concepts? Most of us make lists at the start of a new year to make changes, but we soon revert back to our old habits. Tal Ben-Shahar, a Harvard researcher, author, and professor who teaches leadership, happiness, and mindfulness all around the world, stated in an interview for NBC’s Today, “Research shows that to bring about lasting change what we need [. . .] are the three R’s—reminders, repetition, and rituals.” Setting a reminder on your phone to turn your focus to the change you want to incorporate and doing these things on a regular basis lead to the changes in our brains. It trains our brains to create rituals that then allow us to keep up with the habits without much effort.
One of his students, Shawn Achor, outlined these tools to help achieve these changes in his book The Happiness Advantage, and in his TED Talk, “The Happiness Advantage.”
1. Keep a gratitude journal. Every night, without the television on or any music or conversation in the background, write down three things that made you feel grateful and gave you joy. This can be small, such as a warm blanket, wonderful-tasting coffee, or a great nap. Refrain from using negative or positive comments like “I didn’t do that badly today.” Make sure to spend a moment reliving the reason it brought you joy.
2. Exercise. If you don’t routinely exercise, try to move for at least five minutes every day. Set a clock and walk every day. If you can’t walk, maybe jump around a pool or sit in a chair and move your arms and legs. Do that for two weeks. Then increase to eight minutes or more as you can. Exercise elevates dopamine, which improves our optimism.6 There are more suggestions in chapter 17.
3. Meditate. Meditation definitely reduces our stress hormone, cortisol, and increases positive emotions. People are a little afraid of this one because they imagine that they have to be sitting in a lotus pose, with eyes closed, and go into a supernatural state. This is absolutely not the case! Please see page 142 on meditation, and try some of those exercises.
4. Practice random acts of kindness. Send an email or letter to thank someone you may not have fully thanked. Surprise someone with lunch or a coffee, compliment someone you notice seems happy, or just give a smile as you walk by. Just because.
Reinforcing Positive Psychology
The World Health Organization defines health as not the absence of illness but a state of physical, mental, and social well-being. There is much research being done in the field of positive psychology. Positive psychology focuses on identifying the parts of life that make us want to keep living and functioning optimally, which in turn leads to well-being. It is the stuff that makes us happy to be alive. Martin Seligman categorizes positive psychology and well-being into five measurable pillars.7 In his work, he challenges us to go beyond our basic desire to not get sick and instead work toward being well. He teaches us to focus on fulfillment, which raises the bar and makes us grow. Optimism and positive emotions are the link between positive psychology and physical health and ultimately our well-being.
There are five pillars of positive psychology:
•Positive emotions. Positive emotions are those which include a deeper feeling of emotion and purpose, such as gratitude, serenity, hope, awe, interest, pride, and amusement. Think of yourself and how you feel when you look at a beautiful natural landscape. What are the emotions you feel? These emotions are associated with the feel-good communicators in our bodies, known as dopamine and serotonin.8
•Engagement. Engagement is the complete immersion into an activity or job that can challenge us and our skills. It is the state where we lose ourselves in tasks.
•Meaning. Belong to and serve something that has a purpose larger than ourselves, a purpose for a greater good, such as community work.
•Relationships. Cultivate strong relationships with family, friends, and community.
•Accomplishments. Work toward mastery and success for the sake of achievement.
Just as a building cannot be held up with only one or two pillars, neither are only one or two of these pillars enough for us to get the most out of life. A building needs a proper foundation, and so do we. A proper foundation for us is all five pillars of positive psychology. For example, for a pleasant or fulfilled life, one must cultivate social connections, work toward goals that are in line with passions, and find meaning on a day-today level. An optimistic outlook is a great aide in achieving these pillars.
Triggering Our Fire
There is also a link between negative emotions, such as depression, and increased inflammatory markers.9,10 The negative emotions of depression and anxiety can also elevate cortisol, our stress hormone.11 In essence, negative emotions can refuel the internal fire we discussed in earlier chapters that continues to signal more inflammation in our bodies by contributing to sympathetic overdrive. Although this seems like common sense, it is one more reason to work toward reducing our negative emotions by working on increasing our positive ones like optimism.
Cultivating these practices can rewire the way your brain thinks about a situation.8 On any given day, there are situations that are out of our control that may induce stress. As Michael Singer says in his book The Surrender Experiment, “Each of us actually believes that things should be the way we want them, instead of being the natural result of all the forces of creation.”
Ultimately, the only things in our control are our thoughts, which lead to our emotions. The practices on page 191 can lead to a more positive outlook. A more positive outlook can help us achieve the foundation of the five pillars. By focusing on what we can control—doing work with intent, having gratitude for what we do have and where we are, and allowing the natural course of things to go forward—we will find that we are more peaceful and fulfilled. The tools can be a challenge for anyone, regardless of whether you are a naturally positive person or not. We know there is a limited time in the day. We know we cannot sit and meditate and exercise all day. As the late Richard Edlich, MD, a former plastic surgeon at the University of Virginia and Dr. A’s mentor, once told her, “It is not about finding the calm [and joy] on a mountain in India. That’s easy. It is about bringing the calm into the here and now.” Working on rituals teaches us how to bring calm into our daily lives. Like anything worth doing, with time and practice these tasks will begin to feel natural, and you will be astonished at your changes. Give it a try!