3 Key Steps to Stay Happy Despite Illness
Life is filled with difficult moments and stressful days. When dealing with chronic medical conditions, those daily challenges become even harder to handle. Though it may seem impossible, staying happy despite illness is more beneficial than you may think. In fact, it has numerous health benefits, even in your darkest moments.
Adding enjoyment and fun activities to your day is crucial for several reasons. Also called recreation therapy, they improve your mood and outlook for better mental health. Those attending these activities more often, despite chronic illnesses, notice reduced symptoms and a faster recovery.
Check out the following sections to discover just how happiness affects your overall health.
Stay Happy Despite Illness with These Steps
One of the best things you can do for your health is maintain a positive attitude. The holidays can be somewhat stressful, but there is a lot to love about them. When focusing on the joy of the season, those negative thoughts will fade into the background.
As they disappear, stress, anxiety, and other health issues will ease while your immune system is boosted. There are several methods to achieve a happy mood despite illness. We’ll discuss these in the following sections.
1. Make joy part of your healing process
Bring joy to your life by making daily fun activities part of your healing process, even if you are not in the mood. Chronic illnesses and diseases create plenty of worries that may dominate your thoughts. When you’re focusing on such issues, it’s hard to engage in anything else. As well as avoiding chores and errands, many people also put aside hobbies and activities they enjoy. Without anything else to do, they then dwell on the negative aspects of their condition.
Avoiding this vicious cycle is easier than you may think. Instead of focusing on your illness and its symptoms, choose an activity you like. This could be visiting friends, shopping, a favorite hobby, or a movie. Force yourself to engage in your chosen activity, and despite your illness, you’ll be happy in no time.
2. Laughter improves quality of life
There’s more truth to the phrase “laughter is the best medicine” than people think. Laughing at funny stories or jokes makes people happy, despite any illness or issue they’re dealing with. Even when you’re in a terrible mood, a good laugh raises your spirits.
Laughter has a few lesser-known benefits as well. The more you giggle, the stronger your immune system becomes, reducing medical issues. It also prevents harmful stress damage, reduces pain, increases blood flow, and burns calories. There is even evidence that those with a fantastic sense of humor live longer, so laugh whenever you can.
3. Focus on health improvement
Healthy lifestyle choices are one way to achieve this goal. Nutritious meals instead of fatty, fried, or processed foods are a good place to start. Adding physical activities, like walking, biking, swimming, or gardening, is also beneficial. If you’re unsure what improvements to focus on, speak to your doctor and follow their advice.
Those diagnosed with chronic illnesses or diseases often dwell on the negatives. Doing so brings them down and may even increase pain and other symptoms. To stay happy despite an illness, focusing on the good side of life will improve your health.
Resources:
https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/wellness-and-prevention/the-power-of-positive-thinking
https://selecthealth.org/blog/2020/02/how-to-stay-optimistic-during-hard-times
https://www.helpguide.org/articles/mental-health/laughter-is-the-best-medicine.htm
https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/stress-management/in-depth/positive-thinking/art-20043950
This article contains informational and educational materials and does not replace health or medical advice. For questions or concerns regarding your medical condition or health objectives, speak to a qualified physician or healthcare provider.
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