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Positive Psychology

Positive psychology says we need more good news in our world. We've all heard how important it is to be in a positive frame of mind. Of course, this same sentiment has been around for thousands of years in the ancient cultures.

Good in theory, not always so easy in practice. So what can we do to help our mental health and hopefully reduce things like anxiety and depression?

Ancient Wisdom

The ancient wisdom has always been that we put our attention where we can on what is positive, what's uplifting, what is sweet, what is beautiful in our world. Why? Because as the ancient Vedic aphorism suggests, "What we see, we become."

As the ancient Hawaiians also said, "Where attention goes, energy flows."

Simply put, what we put our attention on grows stronger in our lives. In the ancient Ayurvedic understanding and current day Maharishi Ayurveda for example, the understanding is that we metabolize not just the food we eat, but everything we experience.

Digestion … of experience

The term metabolize is often used in connection with food. We eat food. We need to process that food. We need to digest it, and then metabolize it so that we get the benefits of its nutrients, but as mentioned, it's not just food that we have to metabolize.

The ancients understood that all our sensory perceptions, what we see, what we taste, what we smell, what we touch also must be metabolized or processed on a deep level.

Most important today is what we hear. Do we hear good news or stories about war, crime and all the bad things that abound in our western media?

We have to process those things and it has a physiological effect. It can dampen our immune system, raise our stress hormones and negatively impact our mental health.

Remember when you were a little kid, and hours would go by without you even knowing? How did that happen?

You were ‘PLAYING’. Whatever it was for you – cars, trucks, Barbie, doctors & nurses, rubbing the inside of your mates undies with ‘tiger balm’ (ouch!) etc etc, you certainly weren’t worrying about work, money or anything else we worry about as adults.

Christmas is the time for reunions, catching up with families, old friends, etc. It’s good because it shows why a few ‘drinks with the boys’ or ‘gossip (er I mean meaningful discussion’) with the girls’ is actually a great boon for your health & well-being.

Check out these fascinating facts.

1. Brighten Things Up – Make a ‘Cheerier’ Workplace

In the pursuit of looking sleek, modern & professional, many workplaces can tend towards darker interiors, cold furnishings and a generally ‘smart’ yet not so healthy work environments.

Too much heavy/dark colours etc can tend to dull the mind and even contribute to lack of vitality and even depression.

With people spending 8 hours plus ‘in the office’, one of the most profound ways to increase morale, positivity and general health is to brighten up your workplace environment.


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The Doshas of Ayurveda 

Understand your Mind-Body Constitution (Body-Type) to know what diet, exercise, work, relationships and stress are right for you ... and which are not!

 

Three people get stressed at work, one has a nervous breakdown, one has a heart attack and the other develops diabetes. 

Why do three different people on the same exercise program get three completely different results?

Have you ever wondered why any of the millions of diets that have been invented, none ever work for everyone?

In fact, if you looked closely, you would find that any diet or exercise regime, works great for about one third of the population, is averagely successful for another third, and for the other third, they are downright damaging to one’s health.

 

Why is this so?

New International Best-Selling book just out featuring 16 of Australia’s leading health and well-being experts (oh … and me! They needed 16 and were one expert short!

Further Book & Purchasing Info Here

The evening meal – a key to super energy, good sleep and weight loss … or to sickness and suffering

Food that we do not digest by the time we go to bed sows the seeds of sickness and disease.

If there was a pill that could give us up to 50% more energy, significantly reduce our risk of chronic disease and almost guarantee a healthy weight for the rest of our life, many people would probably pay hundreds if not thousands of dollars for it. Ironically, 90 – 95% of us (Westerners) do something each and every day that, if changed, could deliver all the above benefits and more. It doesn’t take any more time out of one’s day, actually saves money, and is a hallmark of the healthiest, longest living people throughout time. It is the most basic, simple, yet rarely followed wisdom of ‘eating light at night’.

One great way to quickly restore balance & enjoying good health is to completely experience the ‘present moment’ – in a ‘transcendent’ way, not a stressed way.

Funnily enough, by far the best teachers/examples of this are young children. Before we ‘grow up’ too much, a young child’s world is full of fascination, wonder & innocence (lack of judgement/labels). To observe this state of unbounded freedom & simple joyousness actually helps that same health producing ‘vibration’ resonate within us.

This is just a simple reminder for anyone looking to lose weight.The most important thing in losing weight is to…..NOT TO FOCUS ON LOSING WEIGHT.

Focusing solely on ‘what we weigh’ is a recipe for disaster and often results in compromising our health.

Everyone of us is different, and you have a healthy (ideal) weight range for your particular body type – pre-determined genetically.Some people are naturally slim – these are the people with a ‘high metabolism – commonly known in scientific/technical terminology as ………….’BASTARDS’.Others are NATURALLY of a bigger build (the ‘cuddlies’). This is perfectly normal & healthy for them.

Not sure if you saw the email some time ago about the Philosophy of Charles Schultz – the creator of the “Peanuts” comic strip. Anyway, I thought it was so good so I’m copying it here.

You don’t have to actually answer the questions. Just read the questions through, and you’ll get the point.

Bring Nature to You:

Ever noticed that by the end of the week, you just want to ‘get out of your stuffy office’ and ‘get some fresh air’/get back near Nature? One of the best ways to avoid that feeling as well as to improve your mood, workplace productivity, energy levels & resistance to illness is to bring Nature to you.

A study by Professor Margaret Burchett, of the University of Technology, Sydney, found that potplants can reduce air toxins by as much as 20%. A study on houseplants has shown they reduce, fatigue, sore throats & cold symptoms by over 30%. What about at work? Studies in Europe have shown potplants in the office can reduce ‘sick leave’ by 60%.

Plants not only give a bit of ‘life’ & colour to our sometimes ‘over-business like’ office environments; they can literally help reduce stress, offset the various toxic emissions from things like computers, mobile phone radiation, synthetic carpets, paints etc, increase mood and productivity & reduce absenteeism.

Do you ever get sweet cravings, even though you have just eaten? Ever wondered what to do about them?

Here’s 3 simple things that can help.

We always talk about our everyday thoughts/feelings are by far the most powerful influence on our level of health. If you are not spending enough time on the things that nourish you emotionally, that can spell trouble.

We want to make sure our life balance/priorities are in order.

What do you think is the single-most damaging thing is for one’s health, motivation & success? That’s a difficult tone, but “other people’s (negative) opinions” would have to be right up there. Simply put, a lot of people sabotage their health or success, solely because they don’t have the internal strength to disregard what others think.

Do you (or someone you know)- not leave work earlier (at a reasonable hour), because you’re worried about what others / co-workers etc will think – drink more alcohol or eat more sweets etc because of pressure from others…”What are you a teetotaller?” “a little cake won’t hurt..just to be ‘sociable’! – put pressure on yourself financially just to make a good impression (new house, car, clothes etc)?

Are you enjoying good Work-Life Balance? If so great, if not read on for the all important first step.
We know creating better life balance is about being clear on what’s most important/meaningful for us, eliminating the ‘small’ stuff & prioritising etc etc, however many of us never get around to doing it…because our life is so full/’busy’.

To enjoy the life balance we desire, we need to break this cycle and create some ‘space’ in our life. Without periods of space, silence…doing ‘nothing’ (argggghhhh!), we can never truly know what it is that we most desire, what it is that will bring us the balance & fulfillment we crave.

Step 1 Towards Better Life Balance:

Do you think that there are 10 things, far more important for your health than eating the right food or exercising regularly etc?

Backed up by both modern & ancient health science research and based on the now irrefutable truth that, your ’emotional health’ is far more important long-term than physically ‘being healthy’- having the ideal diet etc (that is still good), we have devised a special list of ’10 more important things for a healthy, happy life than proper food & exercise’. We will send out one of these regularly, starting today. We hope you enjoy.

Like to stay ‘eternally young’ and live a long, healthy life?

This is the first in our series of ’10 Key Things to Slow the Aging Process & Live a Long Life, without ‘Growing Old’. * inspired by a request from Susi Wright – the poor old thing turned 34 last week. We hope you enjoy.