Inspirational Awakening

Changing our physiology is one of the best ways to change the way we think and feel. Smiling (and I don't mean just a little smile - a big grin will do!) has the ability to change how we feel in an instant. Laughter too, is one of the best ways to heal our mind and body, hence the proliferation of laughter classes all around the world.

If you consider this idea cute, but not worthwhile, here is an example of how I cured panic attacks by changing my physiology alone:

For around eight years I had panic attacks almost every night just before I went to sleep or if I woke up in the middle of the night. They ranged from startle through to terror and hyperventilation. I didn't think there was anything I could do about it so I kept the problem to myself.

I came across a technique however, which allowed me to immediately calm down my emotions so that I could logically dispute the fears that were keeping me awake.

As soon as I experienced fear, I would relax my body, look up at the ceiling (looking upwards has a different affect on our body compared to looking down) and grin widely. I would not stop grinning until the fear subsided. Sometimes the fear would come back once I stopped grinning, and so I would just grin again!

The effect was powerful. While I was grinning (and it had to stay a happy grin - not a grimace) I was completely unable to feel the terror that would normally strike me.

You don't need to be in a fearful situation to use this idea. You can smile for no reason at all! Smiling is associated in our minds with happiness, so the more we smile the better we feel. And afterall, what is the point of all the things we do, if not to ultimately create happiness?

(C) Copyright Petra Rankin 2005

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