Are you checking Facebook, email and your phone more frequently than usual? Searching for a like, a positive response, or a friendly text?
We can create the feel good endorphin dopamine hit that our brains crave in less addictive, longer-lasting ways with a hug, a stretch, and a smile.
The hugs are extra effective when offered to people you wouldn't normally consider hugging, the stretches are more impactful if you look VERY silly stretching in your current location, and the smiles are especially powerful when they shine for no good reason in challenging circumstances on people that don't "deserve it".
(PS This stuff is science. Look up at the ceiling and smile. You’ll stimulate your thyroid by looking up and the smile actually causes your brain to stop manufacturing chemicals that are meant to unnerve you and stop you from getting into more “trouble”. ( the run or freeze feeling) You’ll feel better instantly. The hug, the stretch, and the smile at a stranger all work as well. While this all sounds like pop psychology, (oh how I hate that word pair), it’s actually science. We could think of it as “ pop-up” neurochemistry -temporary quick fixes that work)
Ok I gotta look up and smile now.
Hasta luego!
I love you.
Mary