Have you ever noticed that when you are embarrassed, you can feel a rush of blood to your face and it turns red? Or
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similarly, have you felt muscle tension and tightness in your stomach when you are feeling fearful? These are physiological changes induced by emotions in your body. Many researchers and scientists have theorized that our mental being has a direct influence on our physical health. While poor emotional health can weaken your body’s immune system, a positive outlook towards life can help in combating physical ailments.
This can especially be seen in circumstances wherein people are feeling stressed, upset or anxious and end up not taking care of their health. Those of us who have cracked the answer for ‘how to lead a balanced life’, tend to develop resilience and are able to tackle poor emotional health. Dry mouth, headaches, high blood pressure, extreme tiredness, insomnia and backache are some of the common problems induced by mental stress.
In order to maintain a healthy mind-body relationship, it is imperative for us to adopt healthy ways and habits to cope with daily-life stress and problems. Below are some suggestions that will help you tread the path of improved physical and mental health.
Self-Awareness is the Key
Once you have grasped the information on how emotions can affect your health in positive or negative ways, the next step is to work towards practicing self-awareness. For instance, when you realize that you feel frustrated, where do you notice the changes in your body? Such awareness will help you better identify the effects of emotions on your well-being and in turn, you will be better able to cope with both your internal processing of the emotion, and relaxing your muscles to change how you feel.
Look at the Bigger Picture
One of the most effective ways to tackle stress in your routine life is to always look beyond the immediate crisis. Many a times we tend to exaggerate and overreact to situations, while looking at them from a skewed perspective. However, if you try to ‘zoom out’ from the status quo and ponder over the larger picture and consequences, you will not just be less anxious about the immediate problem, but will also be able to effectively solve the same.
The goal should be to get as close to understanding how certain emotions can affect your physical health, as possible. This will enable you to be immune to any mental or physical tension that comes your way.
Put on Your Positive Pants
You must have heard people say that life is 10 per cent of what happens to us, and 90 per cent of how we react to it. As a general rule, we always tend to focus more on the negative aspects of our lives, than the positive ones. However, spending too much time ruminating over the minor frustrations we experience and ignoring the many chances in which we could have experienced wonder, awe, and gratitude instead, can lead to serious damage to our mental and physical health.
A good way to overcome this bias, is to spend some time during the day meditating or doing relaxation exercises. These will help you in reducing stress by affecting your nervous system and turning you into a much calmer person.
Fun Fact: Meditation reduces the production of stress related hormones like cortisol and increases the production of good chemicals like serotonin in your body.
Power of Gratitude and Forgiveness
While ‘forgiveness’ and ‘gratitude’ may sound like words you hear from a psychologist during a counselling session, their effect on our mental and physical well-being is tremendous. Research shows that once an individual accepts any negative occurrence in his/her life and objectively tries to react to it, he/she tends to experience a better mental, emotional and physical health.
The practice of forgiveness has also been linked to better immune function and a longer lifespan. In fact, some studies have also identified that forgiveness can lower our blood pressure and improve our cardiovascular health.
Be Vocal
One of the most tried and tested methods adopted for a stable emotional health is developing an ability to express yourself. While it is a good habit to regularly or occasionally – depending on your emotional needs – talk about your feelings or problems with a trusted one, many times we tend to shy away from openly discussing our personal lives with someone.
Don’t Hesitate to Visit a Doctor
In such a scenario or if you observe that your negative feelings aren’t going away, it is a good idea to show a doctor. Your doctor can address the emotional causes of your symptoms and will be able to suggest an appropriate remedy, in terms of medication or therapy. However, it is imperative that you are honest with your doctor and follow his/her advice with utmost sincerity.
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