The Power of Happiness

I found this article excerpt on the BBC site today. It's written by Mike Rudin who produced a series that ran a few years back called "The Happiness Formula". What's so interesting is that scientists are now figuring out that happiness can actually be measured. Yaaah!!! I'm delighted to hear the field of psychology is catching up to the metaphysical world and putting some emphasis on the light in humanity. This article is especially for my left-brain-gifted clients (you know who you are;-)...

Enjoy!


Power of happiness
Happiness seems to have almost magical properties.

We have not got proof, but the science suggests it leads to long life, health, resilience and good performance. Scientists work by comparing people's reported happiness and a host of other factors such as age, sex, marital status, religion, health, income, unemployment and so on.
In survey after survey involving huge groups of people, significant correlations between happiness and some other factors are repeated.

At the moment scientists cannot prove causation, whether for example people are healthy because they are happy, or whether people are happy because they are healthy.
However, psychologists have been able to identify some very strong links.

According to Professor Diener the evidence suggests that happy people live longer than depressed people. "In one study, the difference was nine years between the happiest group and the unhappiest group, so that's a huge effect."

"Cigarette smoking can knock a few years off your life, three years, if you really smoke a lot, six years."

"So nine years for happiness is a huge effect."

Richer but no happier
Happiness researchers have been monitoring people's life satisfaction for decades.

Yet despite all the massive increase in our wealth in the last 50 years our levels of happiness have not increased. "Standard of living has increased dramatically and happiness has increased not at all, and in some cases has diminished slightly," said Professor Daniel Kahneman of the University of Princeton.

"There is a lot of evidence that being richer... isn't making us happier"

The research suggests that richer countries do tend to be happier than poor ones, but once you have a home, food and clothes, then extra money does not seem to make people much happier. It seems that that level is after average incomes in a country top about £10,000 a year.

Scientists think they know the reason why we do not feel happier despite all the extra money and material things we can buy. First, it is thought we adapt to pleasure. We go for things which give us short bursts of pleasure whether it is a chocolate bar or buying a new car.
But it quickly wears off.

Secondly, it is thought that we tend to see our life as judged against other people.
We compare our lot against others. Richer people do get happier when they compare themselves against poorer people, but poorer people are less happy if they compare up.
The good news is that we can choose how much and who we compare ourselves with and about what, and researchers suggest we adapt less quickly to more meaningful things such as friendship and life goals.

What makes us happy?
According to psychologist Professor Ed Diener there is no one key to happiness but a set of ingredients that are vital.

First, family and friends are crucial - the wider and deeper the relationships with those around you the better. It is even suggested that friendship can ward off germs. Our brains control many of the mechanisms in our bodies which are responsible for disease. Just as stress can trigger ill health, it is thought that friendship and happiness can have a protective effect.
According to happiness research, friendship has a much bigger effect on average on happiness than a typical person's income itself.

One economist, Professor Oswald at Warwick University, has a formula to work out how much extra cash we would need to make up for not having friends. The answer is £50,000.
Marriage also seems to be very important. According to research the effect of marriage adds an average seven years to the life of a man and something like four for a woman.

The second vital ingredient is having meaning in life, a belief in something bigger than yourself - from religion, spirituality or a philosophy of life.

The third element is having goals embedded in your long term values that you're working for, but also that you find enjoyable. Psychologists argue that we need to find fulfilment through having goals that are interesting to work on and which use our strengths and abilities.

Unhappiness
However, there are also many things we experience in life that can produce lasting unhappiness.

Professor Ed Diener identifies two key events which can have lasting effects.
After the loss of a spouse it can take several years to regain the previous level of well-being.
The loss of a job can affect a person for years even they are back to work.

So if you are born grumpy are you always going to be grumpy?

The question of whether we can actually use our knowledge of what makes us happy to lift our levels of happiness permanently is hotly debated by psychologists. According to the positive psychologist Professor Martin Seligman of the University of Pennsylvania it is possible to lift our biological set range of happiness, at least to some extent if we work at it.

"The best you can do with positive emotion is you can get people to live at the top of their set range. So I think you've got about 10 to 15% leverage but you can't take a grouch and make him giggle all the time."

You can check out Dr. Seligman's website at http://www.authentichappiness.com/.

5 Minute Super-Charger Workout

This is an amazing five-minute, high-energy, growth-hormone-building workout to throw into a busy day when you can't get to the gym. Be careful, though, Todd makes it look easy! Depending on your fitness level, you may need to ease into these.


On the second half of the video, he shares a post workout shake called "Chocolate Bliss" with organic superfoods. I make my own version that's SUPER-yummy!! A smoothie machine or standard blender will do. Throw in:

~1/2-1 cup coconut milk (lots of vitamins, potassium, chloride, plus lauric acid found in mothers' milk)
~1 cup almond, rice or soya milk
~2 tbs. raw cacao powder (Green & Black's organic is good)
~1 tbs. spirulina powder (one of the world's best superfoods!)
~banana (if you prefer your shake creamier)
~several raw dates, OR 1 tbs. raw sweetner, such as blackstrap molasses or agave syrup if diabetic (from local health shop)
~ice
~1 cup fresh water


Not only is this shake very nutritious and hydrating, you'll swear you're cheating!


Here's the workout link...remember, go easy your first day and ENJOY! :-)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qyUnpgAaRO8&feature=related

Take the Vow of Emotional Independence

When you have emotional independence, you want for nothing because you have everything. ~Debbie Ford

This comes directly from www.debbieford.com. Will you join me in taking the vow?

"Today is the day to join me and millions of others in taking a vow of emotional independence. Emotional independence will give you the freedom to love and be loved, to give freely and to receive abundantly, to expand rather than contract, to move forward rather than stay stuck, to live in joy rather than misery, to be in control rather than to be controlled, and to be nourished by faith rather than diminished by fear. Take the vow now."

The Vow of Emotional Independence

This vow's proclamation says I, ______ ________, will no longer be bound by the slavery of my past.I will never again give my power away to some food, substance or disempowering craving.

I will stop allowing others to define who I am and I will stand for my highest expression. I will stop trying to please others and instead please myself.

I will stop listening to the voice of my critical internal mother and father and I will listen to the voice of my most supportive and loving self.

I will break free from the strangulating grip of my self-defeating behaviors and choose powerfully each and every moment to make choices that leave me feeling great about myself and my life.

I take this vow NOW as a positive stand for my soul's highest expression and for every man, woman, and child on this planet today. As I set myself free, I am freeing all others from the violence of my darkest thoughts and my negative projections.

And now, as I close my eyes, I ask all the powers that be to support me in living this vow each and every moment of each and every day. And it shall be.

Ahhh, freedom...nothing compares!

The Protein Myth

YOU HAVE TO SEE THIS!!!

I've gradually been moving more and more into a raw foods diet over the past couple of years, and have dealt with the lingering question in my mind..."what about the proteins??" While my intuition has been calming my mind, it's fantastic to hear an audible voice that complements the inner guidance. Check this out!

http://www.facebook.com/ext/share.php?sid=97850417356&h=hjqVZ&u=NyOsB&ref=nf

Releasing Toxic Emotions

There is a common thread that connects us as humans and it is the distinct priviledge and capacity to experience a myriad of emotions. Some of those emotions can become quite toxic when they are not expressed and released. Deepak Chopra gives some simple steps in this brief video on how to let go of the energies that can be holding us back from living a happier, more productive life. Check it out!


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DIHbyIf1gT0&NR=1

Feelings

Emotions are one of the most powerful energy forces we will ever experience on this earth. It is our divine priviledge as human beings to feel. Yet, how often do we shy away from experiencing emotions we've labeled as "bad" or "painful"?? What is it costing us in terms of our health...physically, spiritually and even emotionally? Far too much, I'd say.


So, let's take a look at a few of the emotions we've labeled as "bad"....fear, anger, rage, resentment, sadness, rejection, loneliness, abandonment...just to name a few. Isn't fear really the underlying emotion of all of these? Perhaps I'm angry because I believe I'm being taken advantage of or otherwise being treated unfairly. The underlying fear is that I don't matter...that I'm insignificant. Perhaps I'm feeling sad and/or rejected...let's say a loved one has left my life through death or choice. Isn't the undercurrent still fear? Fear that I won't feel that special connection with another. Or, how about one of my personal favorites...loneliness. This one is particularly funny to me...alone...really?? What's under this emotion is still a fear. Maybe it's that I believe I'm unloveable, undesirable, or abandoned...but it is still a fear.


Now, it is absolutely ESSENTIAL that we allow ourselves to feel all emotions fully. To the extent that we allow the fear, we will also experience the feelings of love, pleasure, and joy. In fact, the emotional body is often purging the negative emotions from our energy force so that we CAN experience our true life force whose very essence IS love. When we disallow any feeling to pass through, we bottle it inside our energy field. Our physical body then has to deal with the toxic emotions and will do so by manifesting sickness. Don't get me wrong, I think it's beautiful how the physical body assists the clearing process in this way. Physical symptoms and clearings are inevitable for us all. However, it is much easier and gentler for us to allow the feelings to pass through as they are emerging.


What feelings are you resisting today? This is your permission to cut loose! Go kickboxing, beat a pillow, go for a sprint, have a good cry...MOVE your body and the emotions will emerge. FEEL the feelings when they come up and they will CLEAR. Once they've cleared, a renewed sense of peace and self-love will emerge. The words of a dear friend ring true. When I was on a journey through transition and sadness, he kept telling me, "The good news, Lisa, is that you're still feeling." Those words were such a gift to me when nothing I was feeling was "good" at the time. He reminded me of the essential purpose of my feelings.


As I mentioned before, I truly believe it is our divine human priviledge to experience feelings. As beautiful as nature is, nothing in it has the ability to feel to the extent and depths that we do. Embrace your divine right to feel today. Especially, feel the love...

Healthy Intuition...Healthy Body pt. 2

As I mentioned in the article, part of cultivating our inner voice of intuition is trusting and following the information we receive. As we learn to delve deeper, listen better and trust more, we push open the floodgates of magic more and more. One of my all-time favorite poems that has been a huge inspiration to me over the past several years as I've been on a focused journey of developing my own intuition has been this one. I'm deeply celebrating all the "she's" and "he's" today who are choosing to take bold, inspired steps toward uncovering more of their truth. Thanks for sharing the magic... :-)

SHE
By Kobi Yamada

She must be something special. She is. Celebrate her.
She loved life and it loved her back. Celebrate her passion.
She listened to her heart above all other voices. Celebrate her wisdom.
She pursued big dreams instead of small realities. Celebrate her priorities.
She saw every ending as a new beginning. Celebrate her resiliency.
She discovered her real measurements had nothing to do with numbers or statistics. Celebrate her self-esteem.
She was kind, loving and patient…with herself. Celebrate her tenderness.
She woke up one day and threw away all her excuses. Celebrate her accountability.
She realized that she was missing a great deal by being sensible. Celebrate her spirit.
She turned her cant’s into cans, and her dreams into plans. Celebrate her goals.
She ignored people who said it couldn’t be done. Celebrate her independence.
She had a way of turning obstacles into opportunities. Celebrate her magic.
She went out on a limb, had it break off behind her, and discovered she could fly. Celebrate her faith.
She discovered she was the one she’d been waiting for. Celebrate her self-reliance.
She added so much beauty to being human. Celebrate her presence.
She walked in when everyone else walked out. Celebrate her friendship.
She just has this way of brightening the day. Celebrate her radiance.
She made the whole world feel like home. Celebrate her warmth.
She decided to enjoy more and endure less. Celebrate her choices.
She decided to start living the life she’d imagined. Celebrate her freedom.
She colored her thoughts with only the brightest hues. Celebrate her optimism.
She was an artist and her life was her canvas. Celebrate her brilliance.
She ran ahead where there were no paths. Celebrate her bravery.
She crossed borders recklessly, refusing to recognize limits, saying bonjour and buon giorno as though she owned both France and Italy and the day itself. Celebrate her joie de vivre.
She held her head high and looked the world straight in the eye. Celebrate her strength.
She not only saw a light at the end of the tunnel, she became that light for others. Celebrate her compassion.
She designed a life she loved. Celebrate her joy.
She took the leap and built her wings on the way down. Celebrate her daring.
She said bye-bye to unhealthy relationships. Celebrate her happiness.
She remained true to herself. Celebrate her authenticity.
She made the world a better place. Celebrate her.