Power Up Your Happiness – How are you dealing with the news this August?

What’s your take on the news this August?

We are currently experiencing worrying times as the global economy lurches from one financial crisis to another, threatening our livelihoods,  investments and our sense of security. On top of that the home news this week focuses on the devastating riots across our country.  Rocking the foundations of the communities involved, leaving the majority of us saddened, appalled and full of questions and opinions on the state of the nation.

My impression of the media is that they love a good opportunity to focus on the doom and negative aspects of any current situation. Stirring up readers and viewers, increasing fear and hysteria.  For that reason I limit how much of the news I expose myself to.

How I deal with unsettling news is to acquaint myself with the bare facts, reading opinion and comment on Google news, choosing what I want to read to get a balanced view from the broadsheets. To achieve a sense of perspective I limit myself to the news just once a day.  An essential is also to practice meditation on a regular basis,  helping me to keep a sense of proportion of the bigger picture, avoiding sliding into a state of  pessimistic despair.

Optimistic types fare better than pessimists

Current scientific research shows that optimists fare better than pessimists. Optimistic types respond better to stress, they are healthier and are more confident, succeed better at work and achieve more of their personal goals and are happier.  Optimistic types have a tendency to be more creative turning events presented to them as beneficial opportunities.

I am not advocating the “ fake it until you make it” mentality, or always looking on the bright side of life.  To face our darkness sometimes is fundamental to enable us to see the light. Experiencing challenging times is part of life, it plays a vital  part of finding and moving forwards to becoming stronger and wiser.

Clients work with me because they want to take more control of their lives, to be and feel  happier.  A key factor is how they view themselves.  Many people lack a sense of optimism and feel that life runs them rather than the other way around. Optimistic happy people tend to have more control over their lives rather than coming from a passive place of victim.  There is much written about the sought after state of happiness in fact there was even a BBC series several years back which you may recall “ Making Slough Happy”.

The Happiness prescription

Happiness is part of the human condition that we all strive for, when we are happy we feel younger, healthier, sexier, more confident, and more successful. We cope better in any given situation.   It is our ultimate goal;  to be happy is to enjoy peace of mind and freedom from want and distress, ultimately a preferred state of mind than being unhappy.

I have practiced meditation and self-hypnosis for nearly a decade, along with countless others  I recognise the benefits these practices bring, rather than relying on other people or material goods to bring about this internal state of happiness.   Self Hypnosis, meditation and mindfulness are  ever-increasing tools that  people are turning to, to help them to stay calm, feel at peace and stay in control of changing times.

Internationally renowned writer, doctor and scientist, Deepak Chopra says in the Happiness Prescription:

“ Meditation is simply a practice to allow the mind to quieten down – to get to a place of inner silence.  The practice isn’t just about relaxing, it is to be mentally alert.  Meditation is a  way to tune into our intentions, our goals to get in touch with our inner essence.”

By changing our mental state we become more conscious of the now, helping us feel more in control which in turn affects our personal happiness.  By focusing on the now we are centered in the present moment, why worry about the “what if’s” and dwell on the past?  For now is a given, we are experiencing this moment.  Too many people live their lives and gallop ahead worrying about what might happen, in many instances it doesn’t happen.  All that we achieve is that we become anxious, unsettled and unhappy.

When we are happy we are more able to deal with situations quicker and easier and stay calm and feel in control in uncertain times.

For more information about how you can achieve greater balance and happiness in your life  register now  for my free Power Up Your Happiness programme including regular articles, meditations and downloads.  Simply type the word Happiness into the message box.

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Transform those winter blues

Transform Those Winter Blues

By the time you read this the UK will be just about adjusting to the clocks going back one hour to Greenwich Mean Time.

I  recently read with interest a reference to a study in the British Medical Journal that claims staying on British Summer Time may encourage us to be more active in the evenings; which in turn could positively affect people’s mental health and well being.

The BMJ report came after claims that the lack of daylight may be a contributing factor to a much referred to condition known as Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) – a type of winter depression that affects an estimated 7% of the UK’s population every winter.

SAD, is a type of depression that affects a person during the same season each year. If you get depressed in the winter but feel much better in spring and summer, you possibly are experiencing Seasonal Affected Disorder.

I have successfully worked with a number of clients who have had SAD finding it very difficult to function in the winter season between November and April.  They particularly experienced problems during December, January and February.

I can empathise having had similar feelings myself.  Prior to training as a hypnotherapist I experienced all of the above.  Both my daughters were born in the winter months and I used to find  raising sufficient enthusiasm to orgainise birthday parties at the end of November and the beginning of January very difficult.   All I wanted to do was hibernate for 4-5 months under the duvet.  I felt grumpy, tired, listless with dark depressive thoughts.

If you have SAD, or the winter blues you may experience some of the below:

• Depressive tendencies, grumpy, moody, or anxious.
• Lose interest in your usual activities.
• Eat more and crave carbohydrates, such as bread and pasta.
• Gain weight.
• Experience a decrease in sexual desire.
• Sleep more and feel drowsy during the daytime.

What causes SAD?

Specialists think SAD may be caused by a lack of light linked to the shortened daylight hours of winter. Limited light can upset your sleep-wake cycle and other natural body rhythms.  It is also claimed to cause problems with the feel good brain chemical called serotonin that affects your mood.

When our eyes detect darkness, a small gland in the brain called the pineal releases melatonin, which establishes sleep cycles. When we detect light, melatonin production subsides and its cheerier hormonal sibling, serotonin, takes over to promote wakefulness and help improve our mood.

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