I love this quote –
Dog watched his human cry, concerned. Where was human’s smile?
Probably lost somewhere, dog thought.
That was OK.
Dog knew how to fetch.
Simple eh? Or maybe not…some of you may be thinking. Makes you think though doesn’t it, the effects of a smile. We can cheer total strangers up with a smile. A baby will respond to a smile. Even our faithful four-legged friends notice when we do AND don’t smile.
Smiling is the most powerful and profound facial expression. It is universally considered to be a way of displaying our joy and happiness.
There are even more amazing effects of a smile, here they are;
Smiling can reduce stress that our bodies and mind feel.
Smiling helps us to feel more positive in life.
If we’re feeling down in the dumps, smiling can give us a boost.
Smiling uses much fewer facial muscles than frowning.
Smiling increases our health and happiness, on the spot and long term.
Smiling benefits people around us. It is contagious – Remember the song “When you’re smiling, when you’re smiling, the whole world smiles with you”.
Changing our behaviour by smiling can change our inner feelings…let’s see how…
A small muscle movement is all it takes to turn up the sides of our mouth, but what happens in our brain when we do this?
Well every time we smile, our brain has a little “feel good party”! It releases feel good neurotransmitters, including dopamine and serotonin.
These amazing brain chemicals help to calm our nervous system and lower our heart rate and blood pressure. When we have a good flow of serotonin, we are happy, brave, coping little souls.
When we smile, there is a positive feedback loop that goes back to the brain and increases our feelings of joy.
Sounds simple enough doesn’t it?
So, what if we’re feeling a bit low and we feel we don’t have anything to smile about? Or maybe we have forgotten how to smile.
Well, there are two types of smiles, a forced smile and a genuine smile. Experiments have found that even a forced smile produces lower heart rates and eases stress. If we can smile for at least 30 seconds, our brains receive a message that all is well!
So go on, give it a try. You have nothing to lose do you? What’s not good about giving a simple smile, to help us create this wonderful feel good feeling in our brain.
Like the quote at the beginning of my blog….
If we have lost our smile…let’s “fetch” it back…
Solution Focused Hypnotherapy can help you feel better about your life. If you would like some wonderful relaxation sessions and help create more smiles for yourself…please get in touch with me.
Tel: 07950 556382 Email: newyou@mandyholmeshypnotherapy.co.uk
Mandy Holmes DFSH HPD Solution Focused Clinical Hypnotherapist based in Shrewsbury, Shropshire