If Grumpy Cat is Your Spirit Animal, Welcome.

We all have our negative nancy moments, I get it. I feel you. But I truly believe there's something to be said about the power of positivity. This semester I have been ALL about this thing called positive psychology.

I know it may be hard to resist your grumpy cat monday ways but stay with me and I promise you can get on my level. Positive psychology is "the branch of psychology that uses scientific understanding and effective intervention to aid in the achievement of a satisfactory life." And yes, I got that definition from the oh so trustworthy Wikipedia. Now I could go on and explain specifics and interventions regarding positive psychology but we're gonna take it one step at a time.

Still feeling grumpy? It's ok. You do you, boo boo. Sometimes we can't help how we feel. But why is it important to adapt a most positive perspective on life? Well I know that in my personal life, if I am in a crappy mood then I'm not able to perform as well at work, I may not be able to be as supportive to my loved ones, and life in general just feels more exhausting.But ever have one of those mornings where you wake up and just KNOW that you're gonna have a good day? When you're able to visualize yourself being productive and happy, it causes you to perform better and do it with a better attitude!

Visualization is a particularly important part of positive psychology to me. Before I enter internship, I envision myself performing the tasks I anticipate...leading group...doing individual counseling and paying special attention to each patient without stressing about time constraints. So once I get into the hospital, I am ready to tackle what I've envisioned myself successfully completing. Here's a super cool example from Psychology Today:

"A study looking at brain patterns in weightlifters found that the patterns activated when a weightlifter lifted hundreds of pounds were similarly activated when they only imagined lifting.  In some cases, research has revealed that mental practices are almost effective as true physical practice, and that doing both is more effective than either alone (link is external). For instance, in his study on everyday people, Guang Yue (link is external), an exercise psychologist from Cleveland Clinic Foundation in Ohio, compared “people who went to the gym with people who carried out virtual workouts in their heads”. He found that a 30% muscle increase in the group who went to the gym. However, the group of participants who conducted mental exercises of the weight training increased muscle strength by almost half as much (13.5%). This average remained for 3 months following the mental training."

So in this situation, individuals who adapted positivity by envisioning themselves performing the exercises performed better and increased muscle strength! So basically you're welcome for telling you the secret to get the most out of your workout. No big deal. But here's my challenge. You may be completely content with your grumpy cat ways. But next time you tackle something you are hesitant or worried about...visualize yourself completing the task. How you hold yourself, how you interact with others, and how this success makes you feel. And when you set out to your task, it won't seem like unknown territory! Then next week, we can look into specifics of positive psychology and how it can be useful with substance abuse and mental health. Stay tuned, and stay positive. 

https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/flourish/200912/seeing-is-believing-the-power-visualization