The mind/body connection is something that has been under great debate for many, many years. How does a person's mental state affect their physical self? Terms like psychosomatic have emerged as medical justifications for the mind's seeming ability to have direct consequence on the body.

In keeping with that discourse, researchers from the Medical School Hannover in Hannover, Germany uncovered evidence to suggest that there is, in fact, a mind/body link -- particularly when it comes to the psychological effects of heart surgery.

The researchers posit that a patient's perception of illness and conviction for recovery is of great import. Moreover, based on the research, it seems equally important that patients' maintain a positive perception of their overall recovery.

Source

There's been plenty of spin-offs on the popular book, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People -- some helpful, some not. If nothing else, this most-recent addition is an interesting twist. The Positivity Blog has outlined seven ineffective habits -- behaviors that you should avoid as you attempt to be more successful in life.

Here's a few bad habits from the list:

1. Not showing up. Essentially, this tip is geared towards people who should be more proactive in their day-to-day lives. If you want to be at the gym, or you want to write more, or you're hoping for more time with your kids, show up, and make it happen.

2. Procrastinating. This is my bad habit. I always putz around with pseudo-work in order to avoid the task I find most daunting. If that sounds familiar, get around it by tackling the tough jobs first, and leave the easy stuff for later.

3. Thinking too much. Don't get me wrong, planning, and being thoughtful are important. However (and this ties in with number 1), thinking too much often means that you're not doing anything.

Most of this is stuff you've probably heard before, but it's worth a read if you're looking to get out of a rut, or just need a new perspective. For the rest of the list, check out this post on The Positivity Blog.

Source

One of my biggest causes of stress is procrastination. I'm a fairly busy person, so there's always something I could be doing -- which makes it easy to put off the less-desirable tasks until they have to get done...or else.

But do those things really "have to" get accomplished?

Apparently, using that kind of language -- even in my thoughts -- may be part of what's causing my procrastination in the first place.

According to Litemind, "we engage in mental dialogs with ourselves all the time," and those of us that procrastinate try and force ourselves into action by thinking we "have to" go to the dentist, or fill out tax forms, or do whatever unpleasant activity we've been avoiding.

However, instead of helping motivating us, language like this is actually counter-productive, as inherent in "have to" statements are other messages, like "I don't want to do it," or "they're making me do it" -- both of which are detrimental.

Instead, Litemind recommends giving yourself the power of choice -- accepting that, on some level, you're choosing to do everything (even avoiding trouble with the government by paying your taxes on time). So, next time, try "I choose to" as opposed to "I have to" and see if makes those chores a little less oppressive.

Source

Life Fit Chat with That's Fit Life Fit Expert Laura Lewis brings conversation provoking tidbits to your table, served up with a touch of spice! Byte-sized information that pack some punch, brought to you every Wednesday, Thursday and Friday!

Did you know ... Roughly 30 percent of people who are given a placebo to help cure a negative health condition will totally recover, despite the predicted outcome of research scientists. The only determining factor that makes these people different from their non-placebo responding friends is their attitude, outlook on life and determination. In other words, they changed their mind. (52 Ways to a Healthy You Brown Books Publishing Group, www.LauraLewis.com)

Though the idea of improving your health by changing your mind may sound like a fantasy, experiments have found that a small amount of training spread over the period of a year can be amazingly effective. Dr. Grossarth-Maticek randomly divided 1,200 people into two equally divided groups, both of whom had scored poorly on a life outlook survey.

The first group were given a self-help brochure and six, one-hour training sessions over the period of one year while the other group received no information or training. When the health status of the two groups was checked over thirteen years later, 409 of the people in the first group of 600 were still alive versus 97 of the equal-sized control group!

If you think it is too late to change, think again. The average age of the people in the experiment was 58.

Change your mind, change your matter ... Mind your thoughts as they truly manifest into the matter of your reality.

Can you think of a time when your attitude affected your physical health? What about the people you spend time with? Do their attitudes bring you down or lift you up?

Action Tips

• Start each day with an "I AM" statement ... I AM vibrantly health. I AM happy, wise and blessed. I AM filled with abundant joy!
• Redirect your thoughts when they turn negative. Develop your own mantra to assist you. Keep it positive not negative. For example, I AM in a state of continuous gratitude, versus, I will not be ungrateful.
  
• Surround yourself by supporters not naysayers.
  

Let us know how you do!

The "power of positive thinking" has become such a common idea that it's almost cliche. But does it really work?

A recent study says yes, finding that people with generally positive personalities are more resistant to colds than those aren't as upbeat. By frequently experiencing positive emotions -- regardless of how often you experience negative emotions -- stimulate substances in your body that fight cold symptoms.

However it's not the emotions themselves, but the underlying personality traits of a person that regularly experiences those emotions, that's likely to trigger these symptom-fighting substances. Therefore, if you're someone that has high self-esteem, is extroverted and optimistic, or feels in control of your life, you're subsequently less likely to get sick.

So think positive, and maybe you can avoid the sniffles this winter!

(Thanks to Boing Boing for the link!)

Source

My tongue is dry. My brain is buzzing. My stomach, hollow; my shoulders, tense. It's less than 24 hours until I'll take the baton in my first 6.2-mile leg of the Hood-to-Coast relay, only 14 hours until I'll hit the road with five other mamas, headed to the starting gun at Timberline Lodge.

Gulp.

Am I ready? Physically, I think I am. I haven't been running the distance I would have liked -- it's been closer to 12 miles a week than my goal of 20+ -- but my speed is exactly where I want it to be. I ran in Central Park on Friday and achieved my goal pace of ~8-minute miles with ease. But mentally. Ahh, mentally is another story.

I'm freakin' terrified.

The worst of it is, I shouldn't be. I'm a virtual paragon of positive thinking.