Physical Health vs Mental Health
The link between health and happiness: finding the right balance.
Too often, modern Westerners believe that taking care of their bodies and taking care of their minds are two separate things. Often, this comes at the extent of both. For instance, someone who is young and at a healthy weight might not feel motivated to exercise, because they’re motivated purely by how they look or physically feel, even though the benefits of exercise go far beyond that. In reality, health and happiness feed each other in a positive cycle—healthier people are happier, and happier people are healthier. Here’s how you take action to further that cycle.
Physical health vs mental health
Typically, physical health and mental health are seen as two different categories. We’ll exercise, eat lots of vegetables, go to the doctor, and get a full night’s sleep for our physical health; maybe we’ll journal, go to therapy, talk to friends, or meditate for our mental health. But the truth is that these aren’t two different categories at all. After all, the mind is ultimately just another organ.
How does health affect happiness?
Simply put: quite a lot! It seems as though another study showing the link between health and happiness comes out every day. Meditation can calm your thoughts and also lower blood pressure. Exercise can improve your heart health and cheer you up. And a good night’s sleep doesn’t just make you feel refreshed, it can lower your stress, too.
Health benefits of being happy
It’s not just that being healthier makes you happier—studies increasingly show that being happier also makes you healthier. Research has found a clear link between happiness and a decreased risk of mortality. There is also some evidence that happiness can improve your health in other ways, though the extent of this is unclear. Unhappiness, on the other hand, seems to have a significant effect on health.
How to lead a healthy lifestyle for happiness
Leading a healthy life isn’t complicated. In fact, you’ve probably heard the best advice for being healthy already: a full night’s sleep, a Mediteranean-style diet, regular exercise, minimal drinking.
But make sure those methods are combined with other ways of boosting your happiness (which then can boost your health—see how this works?). University of Pennsylvania psychologist Martin Seligman and Christopher Peterson of the University of Michigan found that there are three main ways that people reach a sense of happiness: doing things that feel good and pleasurable, engaging deeply in their day-to-day activities, and doing good for others. Perhaps we should think of these methods of achieving happiness in the same way as we do going to the gym or getting an annual checkup.
Health and Happiness Go Hand in Hand
Scientists are learning more about the connection between health and happiness all the time. Working to improve your happiness can end up improving your health, and vice versa—so working towards both simultaneously can have a huge effect.
References:
https://www.apa.org/monitor/2017/09/food-mental-health
https://centerforanxietydisorders.comm/diet-and-mental-health/
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/evidence-based-living/201902/exploring-the-link-between-health-and-happiness
https://www.verywellmind.com/the-link-between-happiness-and-health-3144619
https://www.nm.org/healthbeat/healthy-tips/how-happiness-impacts-health
https://www.health.harvard.edu/healthbeat/the-happiness-health-connection
https://shop.plexusworldwide.com/products?utm_source=amb&utm_medium=blog&utm_campaign=linkbetweenhealthandhappiness
https://shop.plexusworldwide.com/products?utm_source=amb&utm_medium=blog&utm_campaign=linkbetweenhealthandhappiness
https://www.health.harvard.edu/healthbeat/the-happiness-health-connection
https://www.verywellmind.com/the-link-between-happiness-and-health-3144619
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/evidence-based-living/201902/exploring-the-link-between-health-and-happiness
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/vitamin-deficiency-mental-health_l_5e3d88e3c5b6f1f57f100995
https://www.health.com/condition/sleep/11-surprising-health-benefits-of-sleep?slide=a45712d2-c0b9-4b47-a86a-aa6e61bce73e
https://www.healthandfitnesstravel.com/advice/topics/how-to-maintain-a-healthy-heart/breathing-and-meditation-techniques-for-a-healthy-heart-toby-maguire
This blog was taken directly from the plexusworldwide.com website