Total Wellbeing Blog

What You Say Really Does Matter

Have you ever spoken unkindly to someone? Did the words profoundly affect that person?

Words are powerful; and when they are used to hurt someone, they can be devastating. The words you speak and the things you say have a huge affect not only on yourself, but others as well........yes, what you say really does matter.

The way we talk to ourselves is as important as the way we speak to others.  Have you ever called yourself stupid or dumb? Do you realise that every word you say is being processed by your subconscious and, in some cases, embeds itself there? Talking to yourself in this way repeatedly creates deep rooted beliefs that may eventually lower your feelings of self-worth and affect your confidence and self esteem.

A similar pattern can happen if you continuously berate or belittle others. Whilst you may regret something you say and apologise to a person, the words have already been spoken and you can't take them back. The person on the receiving end of the insult may take it to heart more than we realise.

We live in a world where words are used to attack, cajole, embrace, nurture, disengage, provoke and inspire and if we are not careful, we can end up hurting others. Anger, frustration and disappointment contribute to the misuse of words. It is down to each of us to take responsibility for our own actions and take the time to stop and consider the effects of something before we say it.

Words said in the heat of emotion can be difficult to control and sometimes it is better to walk away from a heated situation and take some time out until we are in a better frame of mind to manage the situation logically.

Even though the aftermath of unkind words are realised, we still do it. Perhaps the old adage is true, “If you can’t say something nice, then don’t say anything at all.”

The next time you speak, think about the words you use. Choose them wisely when speaking to people around you at work and at home.  Understand that your choice of words is powerful enough to positively or negatively affect someone else's life.

Laughter is the best medicine

Is there too much stress in your life? Is everything piling up and weighing you down? You should try a proven natural therapy that has been used for generations to relive stress and make you feel better. So what is this miracle cure that makes us feel so great...

It’s laughter. Laughter is nature’s way of easing tension and helping us relax. So take some time to laugh every day and you’ll be feeling better in no time.

So how does laughter work exactly?

Physically - a mini workout...

Laughter works on several levels to make us feel better and less stressed. Laughter works to relieve stress physically. When we laugh, stress hormones in our blood, like cortisol, are actually reduced. Laughter also gives us a mini workout, which improves our health and releases hormones that make us feel happier.

Along with a healthy lifestyle, it also helps to boost our immune system. The stronger our immune system is, the better we feel and the more prepared we are to combat stress and illness.

Emotionally - think more positively...

Our bodies are designed to release excess emotions physically through acts such as laughing and crying. When we laugh, it releases some of our negative emotions as well.

It can also change the thoughts that promote our emotions. Laughter helps us think more positively, worry less, and be less stressed. Even if laughter doesn’t promote positive thinking, it can make us forget about our negative thoughts for a while and feel better.

Socially - promote positive relationships...

If you’re laughing with friends or loved ones, you are also promoting social bonding. When we are bonded with people, it promotes positive relationships that can make us feel more supported and less burdened, so we feel less stressed out about our personal situation.

Fake it till you make it...

So what do you do if life just isn’t that funny? What if you just can’t find anything to laugh at? You fake it. That’s right, fake laughing.

Consider one study done on forced laughter. Participants were asked to watch a movie and either not laugh at anything or laugh at the jokes whether they thought they were funny or not. After the movie, participants filled out a survey on how much they liked the movie. Believe it or not the people who laughed rated the movie as significantly better and funnier. Laughing, forced or not, improves the way you view the world and helps to fight stress from your everyday life.

In addition to stress relief, laughing has also been show to help you eat less, boost your immune system, increase your pain threshold, and even help you heal faster. So don’t delay. Whether it means going to a funny movie or laughing for no good reason at all, start laughing your way to a less stressful life.

Reduce Anxiety with Happy Thoughts

Although stress can be natural and positive, providing us with a sense of urgency to get things done, it can also lead to serious health problems if it builds up and we don't take steps to release it.

One way that we can reduce stress and anxiety is through positive thinking. Thinking 'happy thoughts' is one of the simplest techniques and also something that we have total control over. It is a resource that we can tap into that is totally free and we have access to it whenever we choose.

How we think controls what we do and how we handle our lives. If a negative thinker is in a stressful situation, they’ll spend their time worrying about the situation, anticipating the worst, and ignoring the positives. When a positive thinker is faced with a stressful situation, they instead focus on how they can overcome the situation and what they can learn from it.

If as a negative thinker, you get bogged down by anxiety, it is very difficult to find a way out of the situation whereas if you are a positive thinker, your frame of mind enables you to solve problems and learn from your experiences. Positive people are not only better at coping with life in general, they are also less likely to get disease and have a greater sense of wellbeing.

You’re probably thinking “That’s nice, but how do I actually change my thought from negative to positive?” The truth is that most of our thinking is automatic. This means it takes time and effort to change our thoughts, but it doesn’t mean it’s impossible. Here are some steps that can help:

• Take time to stop regularly throughout the day and reflect on your thoughts.
• Take specific negative thoughts you have and write them down.
• Next to them, write a positive version of each negative thought.
• When the negative thought comes to mind again, work at replacing it with the new positive thought as many times as you can throughout the day.

If you keep telling yourself the same things over and over, you’ll eventually start to believe them and start to think about them automatically.

If you have an anxiety disorder, you may find there are so many negative thoughts swirling around in your head they’re just impossible to get rid of. While you make one thought positive, 10 more negative thoughts pop into your head. Such an overwhelming amount of negative thought can be difficult to overcome.

If you recognize this problem, then you’ll probably benefit from meditation. This is a breathing and focusing method used to relax your body and clear your mind. Once you remove obsessive negative thoughts from your head, then you can then start to replace them with positive thoughts that help you lead a happier, healthier, longer life.

Natural Skin Care with Witch Hazel

Witch Hazel has been used for generations as an effective natural skin care treatment and its popularity and effectiveness means that it is often used in mainstream skin products and well as in its pure form.

Witch Hazel can be found in most stores in the form of astringent, medicated pads, creams, toners and facial washes. There are many benefits of Witch Hazel and here are just some of its most popular uses for your skin problems:

Click here to read the full article...

How to stop procrastinating

Even the word 'procrastination' is a painful one - and rightly so! When we procrastinate and put things off, it often feels like quite a painful experience - one where we feel stuck and not sure what to do next.

There are many reasons for procrastination from a fear of failure to not knowing enough about what we are working on to total overwhelm - to name but a few. For instance, I have a tendency to get over enthusiastic about all the things I want to do and end up having so much on the go that I end up not knowing where to start!

Your experience with procrastination may be similar or may be sparked by totally different circumstances - we all have our own reasons but I'm sure we have all experienced feeling stuck like this at some point?

I think it is important that we all realise that it is normal human behaviour and that the first step in overcoming procrastination is recognising that we are doing it in the first place - only then can we put together a plan of action to help us move forward.

Click here to read Arina Nikitina's article for more tips on motivation and overcoming procrastination...