Is your glass half-empty or half-full? How you and I answer this age-old question about positive thinking may reflect our outlook on life and our attitude toward ourselves and our patients, and whether we are optimistic or pessimistic; it may even affect our health. I have recently gone through some events in my life that I really had to dig in deep to keep a positive attitude. I like to think I am an optimistic person, but life gets in the way sometimes and it becomes difficult to keep that positive attitude.
There have been numerous studies that have shown that characteristic traits such as optimism and pessimism can affect many areas of your health and well-being. The positive thinking that typically comes with optimism is a key part of successful stress management. Effective stress management is linked with many health benefits. If you tend to be pessimistic, do not be discouraged, you can learn the skills needed to have positive thinking (Mayo Clinic).
Positive thinking can start with self-talk. What is self-talk you ask? It is the unspoken thoughts that go through your head endlessly on a daily basis. These thoughts can come from logic and reason and can be positive or negative. Some of these thoughts might even start from mistaken beliefs because of a lack of information. If your thoughts going through your head are mostly negative, it would stand to reason that your outlook on life is more likely to be pessimistic and vice versa; if your thoughts are mostly positive, you're more likely to be an optimistic person and one who practices positive thinking.
The health benefits associated with positive thinking may include, but are not limited to, lower levels of distress, greater resistance to the common cold, increased life span, improved physical and psychological well-being, decreased rates of depression, healthier coping skills during times of stress and hardship, and a reduced risk of death from cardiovascular disease (Mayo Clinic). Your practice of positive thinking can even benefit your patients you provide care for. Different theories have been explored on how people who have had positive life experiences, and who have a positive outlook on life, have experienced the health benefits mentioned earlier. One theory is that with a positive outlook you are better equipped or enabled to cope better in stressful situations. This in turn diminishes the detrimental health effects of stress that can occur to your body. I would suggest that it stands to reason that if you have a positive and optimistic view of yourself and life in general, you will live a healthier lifestyle such as getting plenty of physical exercise, have a healthy diet, limit excess intake of alcohol, and do not smoke. So, what is your self-talk? Have you figured out if you are an optimist or a pessimist?
Take the time to identify negative thinking. Do you filter out positive aspects of a situation and focus on the negative? Are certain situations with your patients or others always black and white with no middle ground (polarization)? Are things only good or bad? Do you personalize when bad things happen or automatically anticipate the worst? Turn your negative thinking into positive thinking! This is not hard to do, but it will take time and practice. You will be creating a new habit.
Start by focusing on a negative area in your life that you want to change to a positive. This might include work relationships with others and/or patients, or even a personal relationship outside of the workplace. Work on one area at a time. Surround yourself with positive people and influences. Negativity can increase your stress level, so make sure you are surrounded with supportive, helpful, and positive people. Intermittently evaluate what you are thinking and if you are feeling negative, think of something positive. Keep yourself open to humor, and make sure whatever you are saying to yourself you would say out loud to someone else. Learn to manage your stress.
Practicing positive thinking will not happen overnight. Practice makes perfect. You will find that with positive thinking you will be less critical of others and yourself. Your patients, coworkers, and others will enjoy your positive mood and outlook. Positive thinking will give you the power to look at your negative self-talk and turn it into an opportunity to learn something new, and to tackle complicated things from a different angle. Keep your glass half-full, not half-empty.