How a Negative Attitude Can Degrade Your Health
The mind is a powerful tool, and it can have a greater influence on your physical health than you may think. Keep in mind, it's not a magic wand -- you can't simply wish away a particular issue or circumstance to your health. However, your mindset plays a much bigger role when it comes to shaping and forming your overall mental health, and the state of your mental health can noticeably improve or degrade your physical well-being. Scientists and healthcare providers alike have known for some time now that physical ailments such as headaches, fatigue, joint stiffness, and weight gain can all be attributed to mental health issues such as depression and chronic stress and anxiety. It's for this reason that changing your attitude for the better can be a great way to change your physical health around as well.
Avoid These Unhelpful Mindsets
The mind is surprisingly adept at sabotaging itself. Negative mindsets are often shaped and encouraged by a person's upsetting past experiences which falsely color their belief systems going forward in life. One common pattern of thinking that many of us have fallen into is choosing to focus on everything that's going wrong in our lives, rather than looking at everything that's going right. It is for this reason why people who practice gratitude are generally happier and healthier overall.
When you're stressed and upset, it's easy to take everything as a personal attack against you. You may begin to see random instances such as getting stuck in traffic or having an interaction with a rude person to be directly tied to your life. You may think only bad things happen to you, or that you somehow deserve unfair treatment. It's important to keep in mind that life is random, and you really can make of it what you choose to. As hard as it can be at times, try your best to always start and end the day on a positive note. Many people find it helps to keep a gratitude journal in which they list three things they were grateful for or proud of each day.
It's also a good idea to stop comparing yourself to other people. It may seem like everyone has their lives together but you; just keep in mind that people very rarely like to talk about their failures. This doesn't mean that everyone is suffering, but you should take some comfort in knowing no one is perfect all the time -- including you! Over time, choosing to focus on the positive aspects of life and creatively moving past negative experiences can seriously improve your overall sense of wellness. Your body and mind will be more at harmony and therefore better adept to deal with threats to your health.