Positive thinking and health

Positive Thinking is an existential feature that every human being needs to retain. Having positive thoughts makes not just oneself feel good, but also every one else around one. Most of the time. This is not just about a happy face or smile. But about the attitude one takes in different situations. That is what matters. I am a positive thinking human. A lot of people tell me that I am also radiant person and can put a smile on peoples’ faces. Positive thoughts are a real game changer when it comes to work-life balance and stressful tasks. Being able to see the situation from a different angle without judgement, prejudices or negative attitude. Yes, sometimes the job IS difficult and stressful. Yes, sometimes a person CAN drive one nuts. Yes, sometimes there are inevitable things that NEED to be done. And life don’t ask if you have time for this or not. It just happens. Suddenly. Unexpectedly. Positive thinking gives you the hold you need to not get completely insane all the time. It stabilises the brain and prevents the tunnel view. You can better understand the options you have and you can judge the situation according the facts and not your own expeditious assumptions. According to Barbara L. Fredrickson, ”If negative emotions narrow the momentary thought – action repertoire, and positive emotions broaden this same repertoire, then positive emotions ought to function as efficient antidotes for the lingering effects of negative emotions.” (read full paper as PDF here)
But self-tuning and positive thinking alone is not always enough. To say it simple: the brain chemistry needs to be balanced. You and your thoughts are what you eat. Eating healthy, being on a diet or junk food all day long – you need to know whats good for your body and your brain. A while ago I was having not enough positive thoughts myself and was most of the time tired, depressed and had lack of interest in anything around me. Also bad memory, weight difficulties and no physical energy at all. Almost a vegetable. Several years of puzzling trips to doctors and clinics just to find out what was it, my body was missing. Listen carefully to ones’ body and one can eventually find the problem. Around 3 years ago I suddenly found mine. Kind of. The problem was my digestive system and the local sun deficiency.
First of all, food preferences changed since I moved to Germany and that affected partly the system. Stress, environment and the ingredients itself too. More sugars, more product diversity, lack of proper meals on the go. Microbiome of the intestines had to fight. And it is where the immune system gets its power. My immune system was weak and a solution was needed. If you are interested in reading about this topic, you can start here:  ‘Microbial Ecology along the Gastrointestinal Tract’ and ‘gutmicrobiotaforhealth.com‘ I had to do different tests for allergies and different intolerances to find out what was causing the problem.
Secondly the country of origin is a huge impact. Being a sunny side person, from central Asia (Kazakhstan), I grew up with a huge amount of sunny days and dry climate. Moving to Germany affected my level of vitamin D. As described at the beginning I had concentration and health issues that had an impact on my life and daily routine. After a blood test I found out that I had vitamin D deficiency and got a supplement prescription.
So now I take probiotics, vitamin D, have some food restrictions and I definitely feel better. Not just physically (less pain and allergies) but also mentally – I have positive thoughts, I smile more often, memory got better, my body feels more natural and I can definitely say that I feel more alive now. More then ever. And having positive thoughts reflects in my attitude to the environment and people around me.

I hope you can benefit from this post, if you are having difficulties or open questions about your health. Ask your doctor if this suits you and your body because we are all the same but all also very different. If you have any questions or feedback regarding this, don’t hesitate to contact me. Stay positive and don’t worry about too much stuff.

“Keep your face to the sun and you will never see the shadows.”

― Helen Keller