The truth about longevity

The older I get, the more apparent it is to me that there are two distinct, yet intrinsically intermeshed, aspects regarding aging and the extension of life: The physical and the psychological side. Both decidedly distinct and yet completely intermeshed.

The ultimate goal is to live in optimal health and wellness, physically and emotionally. And most of us would like to live this way well into our older years.

Mind-body connection

There are ample studies on what is often termed mind-body connection, which according to John Hopkins Medicine is “…the belief that the causes, development and outcomes of a physical illness are determined from the interaction of psychological, social factors and biological factors.”

It’s clear that external events – whether positive or negative, such as moving, entering or exiting a relationship, promotions, layoff or retirements, politics and pandemics – cause stress in our lives. Even the more mundane events of cleaning, cooking, traveling, relationships in general, can start to wear on our day-to-day ability to cope.

And sure, positive thinking is great. In fact, it’s all the rage, and has been for some time! The Power of Positive Thinking, written in 2003 by Norman Vincent Peale is many times a bestseller.

Positive thinking

What does positive thinking have to do with longevity? Are there studies that prove this correlation? Yes, indeed. I’m a science girl after all. I don’t have the word count available here to list all the aforementioned studies, but they are easily found online (always look for peer reviewed studies from reliable sources).

At the same time, realistically, even the most optimistic of us occasionally finds life, well, not easy. And in fact, no stress at all can make us listless underachievers.

The problem with too much unmanageable stress, is that even the smallest challenges become insurmountable. And can make us anxious overall and feeling negative about life and our futures.

Unfortunately, people can fall into bad habits with their reactions to life events. Years ago, I had a client who would habitually respond to anything in a negative way to start with. Eventually, the positive would perhaps become evident, but every event would elicit an unfavourable response. Interestingly, they were very kind overall, however…

I have a very expressive face, and on this day, I reacted to that negativity. When asked I told this person that I felt that the negative response had simply become a habit and they agreed, but stated “It’s just how I am.”

Their response holds up in studies that state that we imagine our personality to be unchangeable. However, we can absolutely acknowledge our habits and make a change.

I suggested that every time this person was about to make an immediate comment, even in their own mind, to count to 10 in their head and reframe the response in a positive way, even if they didn’t feel this way. We both knew it would feel awkward at first, and it did. It worked. Not all the time, but overall, and the feedback was that they felt happier in life in general.

It is important to note that you absolutely should NOT react in a positive way all the time, as there are genuine times where a negative reaction is necessary and normal.

Tragedies happen in life. And it is just as important to mourn these events appropriately. The challenge here is to actually take the time to grieve, and then find ways of moving past the grief. Not by forgetting, but by accepting life’s challenges and choosing to see the world as ultimately a beautiful place.

Tips for a happier life

• Smile. Even a “fake” smile will reduce heart rate and lower blood pressure

• Reframe your situation. Waiting in line at the bank gives you a moment to reflect or maybe even compliment someone in line. You won’t know how good that feels until you do it

• Spend your time with other positive thinkers. Attitude is contagious

• Consistently evaluate/reframe things in your life. For example, your grey hair doesn’t say “old,” it says knowledgeable’