Do It Myself Blog – Glenda Watson Hyatt

City girls just seem to find out early
How to open doors with just a smile
~The Eagles, “Lyin’ Eyes”

A smile is quite handy, literally, when there isn’t an automatic door opener!

Besides opening doors, smiling has numerous physical and psychological benefits:

• Research indicates that optimistic, smiling people have stronger immune systems and are actually able to fight off illness better than pessimists.
• The British Dental Health Foundation found a smile gives the same level of stimulation as eating 2,000 chocolate bars. The same result without the calories: that is definitely something to smile about!
• Smiling is contagious. Psychologist Dr. David Lewis says, “Seeing a smile creates what is termed as a ‘halo’ effect, helping us to remember other happy events more vividly, feel more optimistic, more positive and more motivated.” One bug that is okay to pass on.
• Smiling people are more attractive. Frowns, scowls and grimaces push people away. Smiles draw people in.
• Smiling reduces your blood pressure. Dr. Mark Stibich offers this suggestion, “Give it a try if you have a blood pressure monitor at home. Sit for a few minutes, take a reading. Then smile for a minute and take another reading while still smiling. Do you notice a difference?”
• Less muscles are used to smile than to frown. Conserve your energy!
• Smiling and laughing is good medicine. Life coach Lisa Branigan writes, “Some doctors are using laughter therapy to replace anti-depressants and to reduce the use of painkillers. According to researchers faking laughter will also produce the same health and wellbeing results as real laughter.”

Yet, look around you. How many people are smiling? A smile costs nothing to give, but can mean the world to receive.

“Today, give a stranger one of your smiles. It might be the only sunshine he sees all day.”
– H. Jackson Brown, Jr.

Smile, it’s Tuesday and you are alive!