Thursday, July 21, 2016

What We Can Learn From a Martian…



Being stranded on Mars is a tad more serious than finding you’re run out of gas on earth and 3 miles from the nearest gas station. At least you can breathe, you won’t explode, you have a phone, and you’re not going to run out of food and starve to death.

But if this has ever happened to you – being stranded without gas that is – then it was probably a nasty experience - inconvenient, frustrating, and making you feel a little stupid. 

But for Matt Damon in the film “The Martian” he was stranded on Mars and faced dire survival circumstances.

So what did he do?

He viewed his misfortune in a unique way… he injects humor whenever he can. He ridicules constantly one of his fellow astronaut’s selection of music left behind that he has to listen to… ABBA fans will know what I mean

My personal favorite is his exclamation that he can truly claim to be the best Botanist in the world! On Mars world that is!

I’m betting you know somebody like Watney – the character portrayed by Damon. Somebody who can always find something to laugh about in any situation. Somebody that looks for the funnier side of life especially, and I mean especially, when things are really bad.

Laughter is good for us. One study from the University of Oxford found laughter made subjects of the study better able to withstand pain.

Scientifically, we do know emptying the lungs by laughing activates endorphins, which creates a mild euphoria and dulls pain. It has both a positive mental and physical impact on us.

So what does this all mean?

Time to lighten up even when things seem dire. I don’t want to spoil your story but everything will be all right. Learn to see the funny side of predicaments as they’re everywhere and they will happen to you. But you get to choose how to respond. 

Have a bad boss? Just imagine them naked yelling at you and try and keep a straight face. Not likely.

I’m not saying if you’re dealing with a life threatening situation or illness you can laugh it off, but most of us don’t find ourselves in these situations every day. But we do manage to create a lot of drama around every day mishaps with family and friends or even idiot strangers. 

This drama leads to stress on our bodies… and we don’t need to add stress in any way to a world that piles it on even before you get out of bed each day!

You can’t control the actions of others but you can control how you react to other’s actions. 

Make a pledge with yourself to start enjoying the mental and physical benefits of laughter… today.

Start by doing this… breathe and smile… breathe and smile… breathe and smile.

Enjoy

Erika Slater CH
Director
Free At Last Hypnosis

P.S. Don't forget to check out one of the best resources I have... my blog. Hundreds of 
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This short article was inspired by my friends over at Uncommon Knowledge.

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