Optimism is the tendency to look on the brighter side of things or to expect and see the best in all things. Optimism can be linked to health as stress can cause damage to a person inside and out. Thinking positively will help you be happier, healthier and things will most likely turn out better for you as well. There are two independent types of optimism: dispositional optimism, which is similar to other personality traits, and explanatory optimism, which affects an individual's interpretation of success and failure. Individuals with high scores on optimism have better health outcomes, and when they are confronted with life threatening illnesses, they will cope with it in a better, healthier way. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (C.B.T.) offers one potential intervention that may or may not increase a person's level of optimism with a corresponding increase in health.
People who learn to maintain an optimistic attitude may not only avoid depression, they may actually improve their physical health, according to a controlled study. People of our society with the current crises and circumstances which lie on their way really need to be optimistic against the future of our country. A research done on our people proved that an approximate 85% of our people suffer from psychological problems. It is due to wrong beliefs and negative thoughts in our minds. In a society where people can handle and tackle their problems with deep concentration and optimism can always make definite and crucial changes in their lives. Optimism builds self confidence and self belief in people through which we can overcome most of problems and even cure and treat our diseases.
People who have an optimistic view tend to engage themselves in health promoting actions such as: not smoking, not drinking alcohol, and watching their diet, using sunscreen, taking vitamins, exercising, and other healthy choices in their daily lives. People who are optimistic about their lives are less likely to become sick or to develop a disease as a person who is pessimistic will. In a study that monitored the blood pressure of people doing normal activities, the results showed that a person who was optimistic had less of a chance of elevated blood pressure than a pessimist. Another study showed that optimism can lead to faster recoveries from surgeries and major accidents.
Optimists tend to experience less stress than pessimists do because they believe in themselves and their abilities and they expect good things to happen. Optimists see negative events as minor setbacks to be easily overcome, and view positive events as evidence of further good things to come. Believing in themselves, they also take more risks and create more positive events in their lives. Optimists don’t give up as easily as pessimists do, and they are more likely to achieve success because of it. Those who were optimists at the age of 25 were significantly healthier at the ages of 45 and 60 than those who were pessimists. Other studies have linked a pessimistic explanatory style with higher rates of infectious disease, poor health, and earlier mortality.
Those that are happy with a more optimistic outlook on things such as life, have a healthier and stronger immunity to things. Optimists cope in ways that are beneficial to their health and reduce or eliminate stressors and problems so they can produce positive effects on their immune system. I have been stressed and worried over different situations and the more I worry, the unhealthier I get, causing my immune system to crash and then I tend to become sick and it seems as though it only gets worse from there. However, if I had been more positive, I would have been happier and therefore my immune system would be healthier as well and things would just get better from there. Those who are more optimistic seem to become more successful in life because they are more focused on their goals thinking with a clear mind and always looking with their heads up.
Optimists explain positive events as having happened because of them. They also see them as evidence that more positive things will happen in the future, and in other areas of their lives. Conversely, they see negative events as not being their fault. They also see them as being flukes (isolated) that have nothing to do with other areas of their lives or future events. For example, if an optimist gets a promotion, she will likely believe it’s because she’s good at her job and will receive more benefits and promotion in the future. If she’s passed over for the promotion, it’s likely because she was having an off month because of extenuating circumstances, but will do better in the future.
Pessimists think in the opposite way. They believe that negative events are caused by them. They believe that one mistake means more will come and mistakes in other areas of life are inevitable, because they are the cause. They see positive events as flukes that are caused by things outside their control and probably won’t happen again. For example, a pessimist would see a promotion as a lucky event that probably won’t happen again, and may even worry that she’ll now be under more scrutiny. Being passed over for promotion would probably be explained as not being skilled enough. She'd therefore expect to be passed over again. It is easy to see that optimists are happier, healthier and lead more active, fulfilling lives while pessimists are more likely to be unhappy, unhealthy and lead a life of depression and despair. I believe that anyone who puts their mind to it can become more optimistic in their daily lives by seeing things in a more positive way and not always looking at the negative part of things. Not only does a more positive outlook on things make you feel better, but who would want to walk around thinking negative thoughts all day and getting negative effects from it? It is obvious that optimism can lead to health benefits and may also extend the life of a person as well.