Happiness & Healing Oneself | Your Choice of Mind & Heart

It’s another one of those times when I’ve come across a subject that I feel is of such import that I post it on both blogs simultaneously.

In the last days I read and viewed this information, which is one small extract of many peoples experiences of either making themselves ill or healing themselves, through their own attitude and what they anticipate. If you think that someone is going to react in a certain way or something is going to happen in the way that you expect, good or bad, typically, because this is the window you’re looking through and the way that you approach the situation, it more than likely will.

http://truththeory.com/2014/04/27/is-there-scientific-proof-we-can-heal-ourselves/

Here is the youtube video of Lissa Rankin, MD’s TED talk – a presentation of the results of her research. YES, she researched and found her proof. Rankin addressed in her TED talk a group of health care professionals talking about how much their caring intention influences the health and healing of their patients.

happiness shot holding up arms Lissa Rankin talk

I’ve written plenty of times about the subject of happiness.

https://digesthis.wordpress.com/2013/02/28/pursuit-of-happiness-the-happy-movie-my-stroke-of-insight/ The giggling Guru and the insights of the writer’s book, “My Stroke of Happiness”.

https://carolkeiter.wordpress.com/2014/12/22/new-year-resolutions-happiness-through-action-one-mini-habit-at-a-time/ Talking about the satisfaction of accomplishing things through adopting mini habits that are manageable.

https://carolkeiter.wordpress.com/2013/10/01/the-science-of-happiness-an-experiment-in-gratitude-soulpancake-upworthy-things-that-matter/ about the importance of gratitude.

laughing buddha

…and a few times about healing…

https://digesthis.wordpress.com/2014/12/13/marijuana-out-of-the-closet-the-cannabis-cure-cbd-tincture/ The Cannabis Cure, by Charlie Bayliss and Amelia Powers “The Powers of the Mind” regarding her ability to overcome a brain tumor not with chemotherapy (which hadn’t been working) but through the decision to employ optimism, dancing and CBD tinctures – extracted from marijuana.

There may be all sorts of incidences that occur throughout the day which may trigger a stress response. Regardless of the source of the stress, our body releases stress hormones such as cortisol and epinephrine. The body responds to stress by producing hormones that are ingrained into the ‘fight or flight’ response which is genetically built-in, from the times when humans actually did have to be prepared to promptly face or flee a threat such as a wild animal or severe weather condition. Yet, it is us who decide how to respond emotionally to interpret a situation as something inducing stress; a perception of monetary, marital, social problems, work conflicts, situational discomforts or environmental hazards etc. Our body doesn’t distinguish between the source of our stress, it simply responds to our emotional response by chemically producing hormones to interpret our emotional reaction.

You basically do have a choice in how you respond to circumstances.

The point is to actively pursue experiences that lead to feeling happier and to alleviate the stress. Making a conscious choice to allow oneself to relax, enjoy one’s environment, to enjoy simple things, engage in activities like meditation and other practices that facilitate a deeper conscious breathing, physical exercise, participating in experiences that engage with nature, eating healthy foods, spending time in the company of positive people and interacting with all sorts of animals; therapy dogs specifically elicit happy hormones because of their unconditionally loving nature. Make a point of acknowledging with gratitude what you appreciate, attune to all of the different wonderful life forms (animals and plants in our world) that are here around you, and recognize that by participating in creative activities and doing tasks that involve achieving little goals, all lead to developing more insights and a sense of accomplishment. All of these different activities that are coming through the heart, instead of through the head, will lead to the release of hormones such as dopamine, oxytocin and serotonin, which the body produces in association with feelings of happiness and contentment and a sense of well-being. Laugh! Go out and play!

Yes, it’s a choice.

Speaking of Happiness | Laughter Yoga | the Giggling Guru Madan Kataria

I’ve written two former blogs regarding the subject of happiness. One published on March 10, 2010, in this same blog, regarding guides to living a longer and happier life.

https://digesthis.wordpress.com/2010/03/10/guides-to-living-longer-happier-lives-right-here-right-now

and a previous article about happiness published in my other blog http://carolkeiter.wordpress.com/2009/10/20/happiness

I recently read an article in the New Yorker about laughter yoga, made popular as an exercise routine developed by the Indian physician Madan Kataria.

The concept of Laughter Yoga is based on the scientific observation that the body cannot differentiate between fake and real laughter. One gets the same physiological and psychological benefits.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laughter_Yoga
a form of yoga employing self triggered laughter

Having come across this article which was printed in the August 30th, 2010 New Yorker magazine, I have to share it. Woops, I don’t have access to the digital version.

Here’s the link

http://madankataria.posterous.com/giggling-guru-madan-kataria-and-laughter8217s

and here’s an abstract, shamelessly copied and pasted:

ABSTRACT: LETTER FROM INDIA about Dr. Madan Kataria and laughter yoga. In the pantheon of celebrity doctors, Madan Lal Kataria has claimed for himself what is surely the strangest mantle. He is a physician who has transformed himself into the leader of an international movement that promotes laughter as a cure for just about any ailment – physical, psychological, or spiritual. He is known as the Guru of Giggling. Estimates of the number of people who engage regularly in Kataria’s exercises are as high as two hundred and fifty thousand, but there is really no way to gather precise figures. Kataria has said that in India alone there are six thousand laughter-yoga clubs. His clubs, like Tupperware parties, are not really his: the people who form them do so without centralized direction. Kataria sells his services as a public speaker and trainer for his own profit. That is how he earns his living. Writer travels to Bengaluru, India to witness a five-day laughter-yoga session given by Kataria to twenty-one trainees. “Laughter is a choice,” he said. “A connector of people. No barriers. No language.” Kataria told his trainees that laughter yoga “is based upon the scientific fact that, even if you laugh for the sake of laughing, even if you are pretend laughing, your body cannot tell the difference.” There is no such scientific fact, but the idea may contain elements of the truth. Discusses scientific studies of the health benefits of laughter and describes the difference between Duchenne (or involuntary) laughter and non-Duchenne (or voluntary) laughter. Kataria believes that true mirthful laughter can have a liberating, transformative effect—one that momentarily erases all practical concerns, fears, needs, and even notions of time, and provides a glimpse into spiritual enlightenment. Tells about Kataria’s youth in Punjab, his early career as a doctor in Mumbai, and his hopes to become an actor. In 1991, he started a magazine that offered medical advice to lay readers. In 1995, he decided to publish an article called “Laughter—The Best Medicine.” He tested the idea out by asking passersby in a public park if they wanted to laugh with him. Describes the evolution of the club and his decision not to make money from his idea. Considers whether laughter has curative powers and discusses research by Norman Cousins, Lee Berk, and others. At the moment, perhaps the most solid scientific argument one can make about laughter and healing is that it can briefly limit physical pain, though exactly how this works is not fully understood. Writer visits Kataria’s home in Mumbai. Discusses his plans to build an ashram to be called Laughter University.