Numerous studies have found that it uses many less muscles to smile than to frown, the suggested numbers involved from study to study varies but the conclusion is always the same.
Maybe of more significant though is the effect on the body itself that smiling or frowning have, irrespective of how we may be feeling. A smile/frown sets of a chain of chemical reactions in the body. Feeling happy and we frown, the body responds to the frown. Feeling sad and we smile, the body responds to the smile. [for example]
One of the things that happens when we smile is that the body releases endorphins – the ‘feel-good’ chemical – in the brain. To smile when we feel down – to put on a brave face – may seem false but it may be just the boost we need to see us through.
At those times when we feel ‘needy’ we are open to suffering, we have made ourselves dependent on others or something outside of ourselves to meet our need and so determine our happiness. In the absence of a sense of our own inner self-worth we look to others for praise and appreciation. Whilst it comes to us we are fine, when it stops or turns to criticism we suffer.
If you read any of the holistic health research (positive psychology movement) it is generally agreed that good health is connected with inner well-being, and the ability to maintain this for oneself. Then I am not dependent on others, my job, the weather etc. for feeling good today. This doesn’t mean I withdraw from relationships, give-up the job or not enjoy the sun, it is that I relate to them differently so that my happiness is no longer dependent on what ‘x’ says or on clinching the deal.
Positive Psychology Research is saying:
1) Smile no matter what!
2a) Create a positive circle for yourself. If you feed yourself positive thoughts you will find that positive feelings will come back. Keep doing this and it re-enforces the circle.
2b) But to make this natural and lasting we need to delve deeper into the self and re-awaken it to its’ own inner beauty and re-kindle the awareness of our true and original joyful state of being.
3) The brain operates at different frequencies: beta, alpha, and delta for example. Usually we are in beta, with fast thoughts going all over the place. In alpha though the brain waves slow down, and it has been found that in this state the mind is able to come up with innovative solutions to problems. This type of brain state has been found to exist in those that practice meditation.
4) Check for small but addictive patterns of doing that don’t leave you feeling good. This maybe be watching horror movies or spending all Sunday morning reading the newspapers. Why? Well, because of the physical impact such things have on us, remember how a smile/frown chemically effects the body.
5) Repeatedly recall happy events rather then sorrowful ones. It was once thought that by adulthood our brains were set in stone. No longer though… now it is now known that we can re-wire our brains. Repeatedly remembering a happy event can re-wire your brain so that in time it is naturally more up beat. Thus, we can in fact remove the patterns that make us unhappy too. You need to know the experience you want to go for and then repeatedly go for it.
