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Being Cheerful Keeps You Healthy
God Nuggets, Issue 22

It is slow death to be gloomy all the time. - Proverbs 17:22

Have you ever seen one of those rare souls with great health into their nineties and wondered what their secret is? Most of them smoke, drink and eat what they want because they attribute their good fortune to a good attitude. Scientists have now proven that a gloomy (depressed) attitude significantly retards our immune system; making us more vulnerable to everything from the common cold to cancer. Conversely, following Norman Cousins' experiments, most doctors recommend laughter to overcome illness of all sorts.

The essential point here is to understand that while a few folks are naturally cheerful, for most of us it's a choice. We focus on the worst of our day or life, interpret everything we see as irritating or threatening, and entertain a non-stop inner-dialogue with ourselves. According to the wisdom of the ages, that brings us a slow death - "literally sucking our bones dry" according to the ancient Hebrews. How many people do you know that vaguely resemble the walking dead?

There is another option:
You can choose to forgive others, focus on the blessings in your life, the good things in your day, and share God's love and compassion with yourself (in your internal dialogue) and with those God puts in your path each day.

Bottom Line: Be cheerful and celebrate life or be gloomy and curse life. The choice is yours - as are the consequences.

by CV Doner, PhD

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