Fifty-one years later, the famous book and video, The Secret, made the same argument. Focusing on the things we want (i.e., being positive or optimistic) can be very rewarding.
Some people have interpreted this situation to mean that tangible material items (having a bigger house, a new car, etc.) will come to them if they just focus enough on that thing for enough time. But new studies suggest that the main benefit of positive thinking has less to do with our assets than with our immune system.
Judith T. Moskowitz, professor of medical social sciences at Northwestern University's Feinberg School, is known as the scientific saint of positive thinking.
She has helped train patients dealing with a variety of physical challenges to focus on a set of eight skills for creating and sustaining positive emotions.
Years ago, she and her colleagues at the University of California, San Francisco, found that using these skills helped newly diagnosed HIV patients fight infection more effectively.
As most of us know, it's not easy to stay calm and feel happy and content while facing a health crisis, but Moskowitz and her colleagues encouraged their patients in both San Francisco and Chicago to study and retain at least three skills and practice one or more of these skills each day.
- Make a list of your personal strengths and how you use them.
- Practice mindfulness and focus on the present moment.
- Appreciate kind behavior and practice it daily.
- Start writing a gratitude journal.
- Set an achievable goal and monitor progress.
- Make a list of the mild pressures that you experience in your life and identify ways to think positively about them.
- Remember at least one positive event every day.
- Determine the impact of this event, then record it in your own journal or tell someone else about it.
Moskowitz was delighted to discover that people with AIDS, type 2 diabetes, and other chronic diseases seemed to live longer if they showed positive emotions. It was clear that the next step was to see if other people could be taught skills that would evoke positive emotions.
According to Jane E. Brody of The New York Times, Moskowitz isn't the only doctor who believes positive thinking has healing power.
In Dallas, Dr. Wendy Schlessel Harpham has written several books designed to help people with cancer. Three decades ago, she was an internist when she was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma. It is a cancer of the immune system.
Then, over the next 15 years, she dealt with eight relapses of cancer. But now she's been in remission for more than a decade, and Harfam says:
- Do something good for someone else every day.
- Keep a daily journal of gratitude.
- Surround oneself with supportive people who raise morale.
- Watch funny, inspiring, or interesting movies.
In one of her books, Happiness in a Storm: Facing Illness and Embracing Life as a Healthy Survivor, she encourages people with cancer, diabetes, heart disease, or any chronic illness to do everything they can to overcome their illness and live life to the fullest.
Harfam draws our attention to the chances of happiness in life despite medical problems and even illness.
Becca Levy and Avni Bavishi of the Yale School of Public Health published a study in the Journal of Gerontology that showed the benefits of an optimistic view of life. They found that a positive view of aging can have a beneficial effect on both health outcomes and longevity.
In sum, positive thinking tends to lower blood pressure, reduce the incidence of heart disease, contribute to better weight control, and positively influence blood sugar levels.
So, even if you are a pessimist, look at the glass as half full. As for myself, I can't help but feel that these results are promising.
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