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14 Behaviors an Overthinker Displays

April 6, 2022 by Deborah Tayloe

Great thinkers brought this world from the stone age to modern technology. These men and women were the movers and shakers of their time, and their influence is perpetual. A critical mind can be one of your greatest strengths, but being an overthinker can hamper your life.

Fourteen Behaviors That Reveal an Overthinker

Why do people believe that if you worry enough about a problem, it will bring resolution? Not only are overanalyzing and rumination unhelpful, but they can prevent you from solving a problem. Being a chronic worrywart can stand in the way of rewarding opportunities and enriching your life.

How do you know if you overthink? Are you making decisions and taking other situations far too seriously? Here are fourteen behaviors that overthinkers display.

1. An Overthinker Will Fuss More Than They Act

If you’re an overthinker, you may spend more time worrying over decisions than doing things. Your mind is too preoccupied with gathering facts and weighing options that you can’t accomplish anything. Each scenario must be played and replayed so you can explore the best outcome.

The problem is that some of your concerns may not be valid. You can’t move on and be productive until you act upon your thought processes. Action is just as crucial as analyzing.

2. Letting Go is Difficult for You

Your time is valuable, and you often use excessive amounts as an overthinker. Consequently, you usually have difficulties releasing ideas and assumptions, even though they’re not working for you. You form an attachment, and you may feel like it’s “giving up” if you let them go.

The nagging sensation may linger even when you’re convinced that you’ve moved on. What if you were right about your analysis in the first place? Constantly second-guessing yourself can make you weary.

3. You Read Things into People’s Actions if You’re an Overthinker

Overthinking compels you to question yourself and makes you second-guess other people. Humans tend to “read things” into others’ actions. You often assign traits to people just by observing a single activity.

You may also be prone to ruminate on what people say. Even the most innocent statement may get your brain’s wheels cranking. Were those words hidden meanings, or were they trying to fool you?

Let’s say a coworker says that they were impressed with a project you recently finished. Instead of expressing gratitude for their comment, you may mull it over. Were they trying to say that your project was subpar or that you don’t often do things successfully?

4. Finding Solutions Make You Ecstatic

Of course, everyone is glad when they’ve finally solved a problem. One of the reasons it takes you over the moon is how long you fixate before the answer hits you. Unfortunately, you may soon doubt the solution and create more problems in your mind.

5. An Overthinker Might Use Organization to Procrastinate

If you’re an overthinker, you may dread making essential decisions. Making decisions may cause you stress and anxiety. So, you draw the thinking process out to delay the inevitable.

The excuse that worriers often give is that they need to consider all aspects of the problem. While making informed decisions is wise, they take it to the extreme. This behavior may be one of the procrastination tactics that you don’t realize you do.

6. You Always Need More Information

Many of life’s decisions require careful research and consideration. It’s like the old proverb admonishes you to look before you leap. The challenge for overthinkers is that they often treat all decisions as if their life depends on them.

For example, one of your friends invites you to a new restaurant in town. It’s not a life-or-death decision, but you may overthink it. You need to know all about it before committing, as the unknown leads to excessive worrying.

So, you play a game of 1000 questions like who owns the place, how they cook their food or the clientele they serve. If you decide to go, you overspend fuss over what to order. Such overthinking is not only frustrating for you, but it also tries the patience of your family and friends.

7. You Need to Know Why

There’s nothing wrong with a healthy sense of curiosity. Without it, there would be no innovation and progress in the world. It’s good to know what you do and why you do it.

Questioning why it is beneficial to solve complicated problems or have difficult discussions. The meanings of these situations go beyond the surface. However, some situations are straightforward, and overthinking makes them more complicated than they should be.

An example may be how crucial it is to ask questions before signing a document. You don’t need the same scrutiny when signing a restaurant reservation. Asking “why” to everything may signify difficulty prioritizing your decisions.

8. You’re Very Patient

If there’s one thing that mulling over everything has taught you, it’s patience. You may feel comfort in knowing that you’ve considered every angle. It doesn’t bother you to check and recheck every fact and process carefully.

Your over-diligence may be a virtue to you, but it can also be a stumbling block, especially when making quick decisions. You can miss out on opportunities by the time you finish debating each point. You’re afraid to take risks, but they are often worth it.

9. You Assume that People Know Your Thoughts

As an overthinker, you may have constant chattering in your brain. Just because you can hear your mind weighing options doesn’t mean others can listen. You may encounter a lot of misunderstandings when you assume that people know what you’re thinking.

They can’t read your mind if you don’t communicate with them. How can you be upset with your partner for choosing if you didn’t register your opinion? Over-analyzing things can create an illusion that everyone else is on your wavelength.

10. You’re Constantly Analyzing Others

Getting to know people is an essential part of socialization and relationships. You may wonder what it’s like to get into somebody’s head. Although, if you over-analyze, people in your circle can be more damaging to a relationship than beneficial.

Part of loving another is accepting them. You don’t always need to know what they’re thinking or why. If the relationship is kind and mutually beneficial, let some things be a mystery.

11. You Want to Rest Your Mind

Being a person who fusses over everything can be mentally and physically draining. Even though you thrive on over-analyzing, you still long to rest your brain for a while. Eventually, you’ll realize that the world won’t stop, even if you take a break from thinking.

You may consider resting your mind with meditation. This ancient practice helps you to acknowledge your thoughts and release them. You learn to gently silence the inner chatter and allow yourself to “be.”

12. An Overthinker Makes Many Lists

Nothing excites an overthinker more than a list; you may have several. They may include lists for groceries, chores, inventories, ideas, and dreams. You might keep a master list of all the lists you’re trying to juggle.

You feel pleasure as you cross off each accomplishment from your lists. It’s a great way to stay organized if it doesn’t make your thought process too rigid. Sometimes, you need to be spontaneous and take a few risks.

13. You’re Not Satisfied with Short Answers

When you over-analyze everything, your friends and family say that short answers to questions bother you. For example, you might ask a friend when they want lunch, and they say “soon.” Now, you fret about it all day because you don’t know if “soon” means today, tomorrow, or never.

14. An Overthinker Tends to be a Perfectionist

According to an article published by Lewis University, perfectionism can harm your mental health. The article can lead to anxiety, depression, lower self-worth, and lower life satisfaction.

As a reasonable person, you understand that nobody is perfect. However, over-analyzing cultivates perfectionism and unrealistic expectations. You may become too critical of others and yourself.

Your negative rumination deceives you into believing that they’ll be perfect if you mull over things enough. You may soon realize that you don’t want something or can’t do it if something isn’t perfect. A self-defeating mindset can only be broken when you learn to stop over-analyzing.

Final Thoughts About Recognizing Overthinker Habits

Rationalization and thinking are the significant abilities that separate humans from the animal kingdom. Like fire, analysis can be a lifesaver or threaten your well-being. Learning how to prioritize your decisions and minimize over-rationalizing everything can make a difference in your life.

Detroit Will Have a Wireless EV-Charging Road by Next Year

April 6, 2022 by Kristen Lawrence

Next year, the first wireless EV-charging road in the United States will be installed in Detroit, Michigan. ElectReon, a leading provider of wireless charging solutions for EVs, partnered with the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) for the project. The electric road system will span a one-mile stretch of roadway in an area of the Motor City known as Michigan Central.

The Israeli technology company ElectReon plans on the road being fully operational by 2023. The EV-charging stretch will be unveiled at the central transportation innovation district. The new infrastructure would charge vehicles whether they are moving or stationary, a revolutionary feat for the state.

ElectReon utilizes specially designed coil segments embedded under roadways that send magnetic signals to EV charging pads. When a car drives or stops anywhere along the road, the vehicle automatically charges. It works similarly to a wireless charging pad for cell phones or tablets.

The company says the EV-charging road can also power electric buses as a bonus. Also, they won’t cause damage to any gas-powered vehicles that travel over the charging hubs. So, it seems the electric road is a win-win for everyone invoMichigan’ss transportation department will contribute $1.9 million toward the EV-charging road project. State officials didn’t reveal the total cost of the electric infrastructure. But they did say that ElectReon would provide additional funding. MDOT also collaborated with Ford and local energy provider DTE, who will provide electricity for the new roadway.

Another contributor to the project is ROUSH CleanTech, a company that transforms commercial vehicles into EVs. They will provide an electric truck to test out the EV-charging road.

The Federal Push for Electric Vehicles

The EV-charging road project in Michigan is a small snapshot of what the future in America holds. The United States government recently passed a federal infrastructure law. They allocated $7.5 billion toward expanding electric charging stations and vehicles in the legislation.

Lawmakers hope that electric cars will comprise half of all new car sales by 2030. Thus, the government pledged to build 500,000 new charging plugs for electric vehicles in that timeframe. Owners of electric vehicles may need the services of an electrical company to install an EV charger in their homes. You may visit the websites of companies like Asbury Electric to find out more about their services.

EV-Charging Roads Being Built Worldwide

Other countries worldwide have jumped on the clean energy bandwagon as well. ElectReon deployed its EV-charging roads in countries such as Germany, Italy, and SwThey’rehey’re planning on creating a wireless charging network to power 200 city buses in Tel Aviv, Israel as well.

For the project in Italy, the company installed a 0.7-mile inter-city electric toll road near Milan. They named the EV-charging road project the “Arena of the Future,” which launched in December 2021. ElectReon used its cloud-based software to make the test track fully operational. So they’ve tested the technology on a Stellantis passenger car and an Iveco electric bus. They will continue testing and research through 2022.

Last October, ElectReon partnered with Smartroad Gotland in Visby, Sweden. They installed 1.6 km of EV-charging roads for a pre-commercial demonstration project. The city’s first electric bus traveled along the wirelessly charged road between Visby’s airport and city center, making it a successful launch. The nation aims to deploy 2,000km of commercial electric road systems by 2030.

In early 2021, ElectReon also launched its electrified road system at Germany’s Port of Karlsruhe. According to the company’s website, the EV-charging road will “power a bus line connecting the new EnBW training center in Karlsruhe’s Rhine harbor to the local public transport system hub. The client, EnBW, is one of Germany’s largest energy and electric mobility providers.”

The road will span 100 meters and include a wireless charging station for stationary charging capabilities. The company successfully tested the road and plans to expand it four hundred meters into the city center.

The Future of Transportation Is Electric

The world is transitioning off fossil fuels in favor of clean energy. In addition to ElectReon, many other companies have taken part in this shift to electric-powered vehicles. For example, a German company called Magment partnered with The Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) to install EV-charging roads in the state. The technology works similar to ElectReon’s, except Magment utilizes recycled ferrite coils instead of the more expensive copper coils.

In addition, governors from Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin signed an agreement last October to collaborate on an EV charging network spanning the Midwest to encourage electric car sales. The partnership, known as REV Midwest — the Regional Electric Vehicle Midwest Coalition — aims to accelerate vehicle electrification in the region and create additional economic opportunities for its workforce.

The network will initially focus on electrifying interstates and commercial roadways to support significant industries and logistics hubs. Concentrating on medium- and heavy-duty fleet electrification will also improve air quality in vulnerable communities near highways and freight operations.

Countries all over the world have begun to prioritize cleaner transportation technologies. The transportation sector accounts for about 29% of total greenhouse gas emissions in the United States and 20% of CO2 emissions globally. However, with the transition to electric vehicles well underway, those figures will likely decline in the coming decades.

It’s undoubtedly an exciting time to be alive as we shift from outdated, polluting technologies to solar, electric, and wind power. Perhaps you will see EV-charging roads in your city soon!

EV-Charging Roads in the United States and Other Countries Around the Globe

EV-charging roads have made their way to the USA, with companies like ElectReon and Magment paving the way to a cleaner future. Detroit marks the first city in the United States to adopt the electric road system. However, it’s also being tested in Indiana as well, and eventually, several Midwestern states hope to have an interconnected wireless road system.

Countries like Germany, Italy, and Sweden have also deployed EV-charging roads on highways and city streets. It’s clear that it won’t be long before we begin seeing these roads pop up everywhere. These innovative roads will help usher in the electric age and transform the future of travel as we know it.

Are Women or Men More Likely to Develop Alzheimer’s Disease?

April 6, 2022 by Lakeisha Ethans

Did you know that more than 5.5 million people in America have Alzheimer’s disease? The neurodegenerative condition makes up between 60 and 70% of all dementia cases. It usually begins slowly but then worsens at a progressive and steadily increasing rate.

Alzheimer’s disease is a scary condition for both those who have it and those who have to watch their loved ones deal with it. The slow and steady loss of memory, language, and motivation leads to eventual behavioral issues, bodily function loss, and death. With a short prognosis of three to nine years post-diagnosis, this disease is incredibly frightening.

There’s still a lot that we don’t know about Alzheimer’s, including how they affect people differently based on age, sex, and lifestyle. One of the main questions is whether women or men are more likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease and why. Read on to find the answers!

1. Women Have A Higher Risk Of Developing Alzheimer’s Disease

Two-thirds of all patients with Alzheimer’s disease are women, according to recent research. Studies into the gendered differences of neurodegeneration have been at work for decades due to the obvious disparity between women and men who develop this disease.

Originally, it was believed that this was a case of survivorship bias. Since women live longer than men, it was thought that they are at higher risk simply because they’re more likely to reach an age where Alzheimer’s is a greater possibility. However, more studies have shown that even when accounting for this, women are still disproportionately affected.

There are many complexities behind why this may be the case. Some experts in neurology believe that this is due to inherent biological differences, but more and more researchers are coming to different conclusions. The culprit seems to be a mix of diagnostic, social, and biological issues coming together. Read on to find out more about the complexities of these gendered differences.

2. Genetics and Alzheimer’s Risk

The main biological risk factor of Alzheimer’s disease is genetic. Namely, it comes from Apolipoprotein E or APOE. There are three kinds of this gene, namely APOE2, APOE3, and APOE4. The latter, APOE4, is closely linked to a heightened risk of Alzheimer’s disease and mild cognitive impairment in general.

But the presence of this gene is disproportionately worse for women, say studies. When they have APOE4, they’re more likely than men to:

Develop mild cognitive impairment
Have decreased memory-related performance
Develop Alzheimer’s disease
Experience brain atrophy at a greater rate
Have lower brain metabolism

This is because women experience hormone fluctuations throughout their life, especially during menopause between the ages of 40 and 50. As different hormone levels drop in women at this age, the hormones also interact with APOE4 in a different way than men, which can have an impact on the brain.

3. Occupational and Educational Differences

For centuries, women have been at a disadvantage when it came to factors like education and careers. There are some countries in the world where women still don’t have easy or direct access to education. And, even in places where women’s education is more progressive, lots of women still give up careers to raise children or become homemakers.

Studies have shown that lower education levels are related to an increased risk of cognitive decline. They’ve also found that cognitive activity associated with challenging careers can delay the onset of cognitive decline late in life.

Interestingly, more recent research has shown that the gap between men and women in the development of dementia has been decreasing in past decades. This is due, in part, to greater occupational and educational attainment for all genders. However, women still make up a majority of Alzheimer’s patients.

4. The Clinical Process May Favor Men

The process of diagnosing and treating Alzheimer’s is often not adjusted for sex differences. This has caused the process to favor men over women, sometimes to the point of incorrectly overdiagnosing men. This impacts women in the following ways.

· Research About Women With Alzheimer’s Is Limited

Neurology research in the past ignored female animal data, with studies dismissing results that included female animals. This is because the results involving female animals were often inconvenient for the conclusions scientists were trying to draw. The data was just too unusual. In recent decades, we have become more and more aware of the necessity of female data in research. Given the fact that Alzheimer’s may affect women differently, it’s more important than ever that women are a part of modern studies on the subject. It wasn’t until 1993 that women were properly included in clinical trials for Alzheimer’s. As such, our understanding of how women are affected by Alzheimer’s may make Alzheimer’s harder to diagnose and treat in women.

· Women Perform Better On Verbal Memory Tests

The diagnostic process for Alzheimer’s disease involves the use of verbal memory tests. This refers to the ability to remember what was told to you verbally. The hormone estrogen, which is the main hormone for women, regularly activates memory. This causes women to experience hippocampal growth that makes them better at verbal memory, say studies. Of course, there are limits to this, and it’s not 100% accurate for all women. But in the short-term process of a verbal memory test, women outperform men regardless of pathology. They can have Alzheimer’s or early signs of impairment and still pass verbal memory tests, leaving them undiagnosed.

· Women Are Diagnosed Late

Due to the aforementioned reason, women are often only diagnosed with Alzheimer’s at a late, more dangerous stage. By this point, the disease is advanced and causes a quick decline that is too difficult to manage. Slowing the onset of the more severe symptoms of Alzheimer’s becomes nearly impossible with late detection. This means that women decline much more quickly upon diagnosis, making the disease more deadly for them. Timing is incredibly important in Alzheimer’s diagnosis, more so than treatment efficacy.

5. Exercise Frequency

Studies have shown that those who exercise regularly have a lower risk of various forms of dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease. Women with high levels of fitness actually have an 88% lower chance of developing any form of neurodegenerative disorder, says recent research.

But a lot of women don’t get the chance to exercise, due in part to different parenting roles that eat up their time. Men exercise more than women, which means they’re more protected from Alzheimer’s.

It’s also worth noting that the exact benefits of exercise can be different across different women. High estrogen levels have been noted as increasing those benefits in Alzheimer’s prevention. Women with hormonal diseases may, therefore, not find this method of Alzheimer’s prevention to be as effective.

6. Depression

Did you know that studies have shown that depression is linked to a higher risk of developing dementia? Women are twice as likely as men to develop depression, which makes them at higher risk. This heightened rate of depression is due to a mix of expectations, stress from those expectations, and hormonal changes throughout life.

On top of that, depression is typically observed as shrinking the hippocampus in women, but not in men, says research. The hippocampus is responsible for memory formation and may shrink more quickly over time due to a past incident of depression. Women’s hippocampi may also atrophy at a much quicker rate as a result.

It is still not understood why only women experience hippocampal shrinking from depression. Still, it’s clear to see that this affects them more when it comes to Alzheimer’s risk.

7. Caregiver Burden and an Increase in Alzheimer’s

Women end up in caregiver positions much more than men do, and the same happens for Alzheimer’s care. In fact, women have a two-fold higher burden when it comes to caregiving and is also more likely to give up a career to take care of an ill family member.

Ironically, being a caregiver to someone with Alzheimer’s increases your own risk of developing that disease later in life. Research shows that this also includes being a spousal caregiver. Caregivers are also at a higher risk of developing:

Depression
Anxiety
Psychiatric disorders
Disabilities
Physical health problems

Worse still, you are much more likely to develop Alzheimer’s as a caregiver than you would if you had hypertension, high blood sugar, obesity, or a sleep disorder. That’s a huge risk, and it just comes from caring for a loved one with the disease! This happens because of the following factors.

There is less time available to keep oneself healthy and manage risk factors for dementia.
Caregiver stress adds a lot of pressure to one’s everyday life and cognitive performance
There is less space to enjoy oneself and set boundaries with the person being cared for without guilt.
A sense of obligation and guilt that prevents a caregiver from seeking help or taking time to step away from their responsibilities to breathe or rest.

These also tie in with previous points. Caregivers have less time to exercise, might be more depressed, will have less time to devote to education or a career, and could be more adept at verbal memory due to the nature of the care they provide.

8. Women Have Higher Immunity

Alzheimer’s disease has multiple components in its pathology, but one of them might be amyloid, say studies. The deposition of amyloid in the brain may be a part of the immune system’s responses to various infections, especially those in the brain. But why does that matter from the perspective of gender differences? This is because:

Women have a stronger immune system, according to research. They’re more likely to experience bigger immune responses to potential threats in their bodies. This increases the chances of producing amyloids.
Women are more likely to develop autoimmune disorders, or so say studies. This is due in part to their stronger immune systems, which tend to overcorrect. This may lend itself to higher amyloid deposition.
Because of how women’s genes and hormones affect the brain and further immunity, the increased amyloid deposition may also pose additional problems that impair cognitive function.

It is worth noting, of course, that the concept of immunity and Alzheimer’s disease is still being researched. These hypotheses may not be accurate, or there may be more to them. More studies are necessary before we can draw any clear conclusions!

Final Thoughts On The Link Between Alzheimer’s And Gender

Alzheimer’s disease disproportionately affects women more than men. Current understanding indicates that this is due to a mix of biological, social, and emotional factors. More research is needed on this topic before the medical field is properly equipped to diagnose and treat men and women in productive and effective ways.

New Study Perfectly Explains How Video Dating Changed the Rules of Romance

April 6, 2022 by Sarah Barkley

Dating has changed over the years, leaving single people to learn new methods. It is a daunting experience that requires patience and resiliency as you work to find the best partner. Meeting people online poses many problems, but video dating is changing the game entirely.

When you meet people online, knowing who you’re genuinely talking to is hard because you can’t see their body language. Video dating makes a difference because it lets you connect before the first in-person meeting. It is a creative way to connect with potential partners.

If you haven’t had success with dating so far, virtual dating might be an option for you to try. Many dating apps offer the opportunity, or you can set up a video chat outside of the app. It’s different from any other type of dating, and it can produce positive results.

Understanding how it’s changing the rules of romance can help you get started. Knowing the many benefits of this type of dating can make all the difference for your love life.

What Is Video Dating?

Video dating is an alternative to meeting in person for movies or dinner on the first date. It allows you to get to know someone before spending time with them outside of the safety of your home. You don’t have to sit and stare at one another, trying to come up with things to talk about.

While talking is essential, you can also do other things together from the comfort of your home. For example, you can watch the same movie while on video chat with one another. Another idea is to cook the same meal or bake a dish from your separate homes.

You can also do online trivia, being on the same team via video chat. Other ideas for your virtual date include watching a stand-up comedy or doing a virtual museum tour. You can do whatever you want on your virtual date as long as you both participate in the same activity.

Of course, there’s always the option to talk throughout the whole date. You can ask personal questions to get to know one another better. The dating activity you choose is up to you and your potential partner, and there’s no pressure.

The dress code for virtual dating can be a little different, too. Many people think you can dress more casually than if you were meeting in person. Others still prefer to get dressed up as if they were going out somewhere in public.

The point of virtual dating is to get to know someone and recognize a connection. It saves you from an awkward situation on bad dates because you’ll know early on if you vibe well with someone.

New Study Perfectly Explains How Video Dating Changed the Rules of Romance

A new study shows how much video dating has changed the rules of romance. A poll of more than 1,000 single people shows the drastic differences in the dating game. Virtual dating is the perfect alternative to an in-person first date, allowing you to see if there’s a connection early on.

The study shows that when video dating was first introduced, it wasn’t the most popular option, although 7% of those polled had already tried it. However, as people started to stay home more and find new ways to connect, more singles were willing to try it. Interestingly, the rise of crypto casinos also paralleled this shift, as more individuals began exploring new digital platforms for both social interaction and entertainment. Only 5% of single people in the poll said they would never try it, making it a viable option for many.

Video dating allows you to meet people from all over the world if you’re interested in that. You can also wait until you feel comfortable with someone before meeting up in real life. It makes the first in-person date less awkward, and you’ll already know what to talk about.

Plus, getting to know one another over video isn’t the only aspect of dating to go virtual. You can also achieve other milestones through virtual dates, including having your partner meet your family. Some couples even establish their relationship status this way before meeting in person.

Ten Reasons Why Video Dating is Beneficial

If you’ve never video-dated before, you might be skeptical about the situation at first. However, there are many benefits that you wouldn’t achieve if you only sent messages back and forth. Many people use messaging to get to know someone, but video chatting has many perks, too.

1 – You Can Communicate Well on Video Dating

Body language is essential to understanding someone, and tone of voice is essential, too. Getting to know one another can be tricky if you only read the words they type. With a video date, you can immediately see if there’s a spark between the two of you.

With a virtual date, you can truly get to know someone without putting yourself in an uncomfortable situation. The other person won’t have time to think about their answers, so you know that what they say is genuine.

2 – Decreased Chance of Catfishing

Catfishing is common in online dating because people can portray themselves in any way that they want through messages. It’s easy to hide behind false profiles and someone else’s pictures. Having a virtual date ensures that you’re talking to the person behind the profile and that they’re honest about who they are.

3 – Video Dating Is Quicker Than Texting

Messaging with someone isn’t always adequate for having an ongoing conversation. It sometimes takes time for someone to reply to a message. However, if you have a video chat, you can have conversations without waiting for responses.

4 – You Can Look for Red Flags

Body language can indicate red flags, but there are other things to look for. Take some time to examine the person’s background and look for other red flags. You never know what you’ll see in their home that hints at problems.

5 – You Can Hear Their Voice

While it might not seem like a big deal, a person’s voice can affect your level of attraction to them. It will help you decide if you want to know them more or think it’s time to message someone else.

6 – Video Dating Limits Filter Usage

Filters are fun, but they don’t show what you look like. Sending selfies makes it easy to mask your appearance to an extent, but live video chat doesn’t. You can see what your potential partner looks like, and they can do the same with you.

7 – It Ensures Safety

Video dating lets you get to know someone while staying safe and comfortable in your home. You don’t have to give personal details like where you live or your phone number. Plus, they cannot harm you on your first date if it’s virtual.

Instead, you can get to know the potential partner and ensure you feel safe before meeting up. Once you establish that the other person is safe, you can comfortably get together in real life.

8 – You’ll Know If They’re Being Sneaky

Some people meet potential partners online even if they’re already in a relationship. If you have virtual dates, you can look for a few signs of a cheater. It could indicate that they’re hiding something when they only want to video chat at weird times or get nervous about live video.

9 – You Can End Video Dating Communication at Any Time

Since the potential partner doesn’t have your address or phone number, you can end contact anytime. If they make you uncomfortable, you can move on and not talk to them again. Virtual dating helps you weed out the people you don’t match with before going out in person.

10 – Understand Playlisting

Before committing to virtual dating, you must understand what playlisting is. New dating rules come with different terms and situations, such as playlisting. It is when someone sets up back-to-back virtual dates.

The term “playlisting” comes in because the back-to-back dates seem like a music playlist or video queue. This option lets someone get to know multiple people and weed out who they don’t connect well with.

Four Tips for Video Dating and How to Stay Safe

Knowing a few dating tips can help keep the event as fun as possible. You’ll always be a little nervous on a date, but you can ease the pressure. These tips will also help you stay safe when dating online.

1 – Do Something You Both Enjoy and Can Relax While Doing

Dating should be fun, even when it’s virtual. Discuss date night ideas with your potential partner beforehand so that you can prepare for a fun time.

Make sure to choose an activity you enjoy and relax during your time together. When you’re relaxed and having fun, it’s easier to be yourself and show people who you truly are.

2 – Tidy Up Your Space Before Video Dating

During virtual dates, the other person can see your surroundings. Make sure you set up your date in a space that looks nice and tidy. You don’t want them to see anything embarrassing on the first date.

It’s also essential to remove anything with personal information on it. If your phone number or address is visible, your potential partner can find these things out before you’re ready.

3 – Treat Video Dating Like a Real Date

Being casual on virtual dates is tempting, but you should treat them like an in-person date. Take it seriously because you’re investing time and energy into the situation.

4 – Don’t Feel Pressured to Give Too Much Information

You don’t have to tell a potential partner anything you don’t want to share. If they push you to give them information, don’t give in. Do what you feel comfortable with and end contact if the pressure continues.

Final Thoughts on New Study Perfectly Explains How Video Dating Changed the Rules of Romance

Video dating has changed the rules of online love for good. You no longer have to stress about going to the perfect venue or being put in an uncomfortable situation. Virtual dating allows you to get to know someone better before meeting up in real life. It helps you see if there’s a connection, and you’ll feel much safer from the comfort of your home.

Being a Chronic Complainer Causes 4 Problems in Life

April 6, 2022 by Lakeisha Ethans

Do you know a chronic complainer? These types of people always seem to have something to whine about. No matter how much good is going on in their lives, they manage to dig out something negative to vent about.

What if you’re a chronic complainer? You might think that there’s nothing wrong with that sort of behavior. But what you don’t realize is that you’re actively jeopardizing yourself! Here’s how being a chronic complainer causes these four problems in life.

1. Being a Chronic Complainer Exhausts You Mentally and Physically

Complaining within reason can help to relieve some stress. But there’s a point where it stops being about expressing how you feel and starts creating more negativity instead. Unfortunately, the perceived utility that you see from your complaining actions isn’t always accurate. You might think that complaining is helping you even when it’s actively harming you, say studies.

A chronic complainer will tire themselves out with their complaints. It’s just exhausting to complain all the time. The main reason this happens is that complaining can activate your stress response. Your body rushes to help you deal with the stress, which causes it to go into overdrive and abandon other “unnecessary” functions to focus on survival.

As is likely obvious, putting your body in a constant state of stress is not a good way to live your life. It’s taxing on your body’s stress response and your mental state. This is why being a chronic complainer can exhaust you so much. This can even become a cause for chronic stress that completely upends your body’s hormones and leaves you with many health issues. These may include the following:

· Poor Mood and Depression

Focusing on the negative things in life will dampen your mood. You’ll have enhanced symptoms of depression and will feel sadder every day. If you’re noting that you’ve been feeling doom and gloom, maybe you need to tone the complaining down.

· Anxiety Stems From Chronic Complainer Behaviors

When the stress gets too chronic, anxiety kicks in. You’ll focus on all the bad things in your life, and your brain will be in panic mode. You may even enter fight-or-flight, so you’ll always be on edge and ready to react at a second’s notice. This constant vigilance of anxiety is exhausting, and it can warp your perception of reality.

· Lack Of Sleep

When you’re stressed out, anxious, and depressed, it’s much harder to sleep. You might face insomnia, nightmares, or generally poor-quality sleep. This further contributes to your everyday exhaustion. If this goes on for long enough, your body will fall apart!

· Low Immunity

Because your body is in its stress response state, it’s not focused on protecting you from sneakier threats like pathogens and viruses. You’ll catch colds more quickly and be much more susceptible to various forms of sickness.

2. Being a Chronic Complainer Prevents Progress

Even a chronic complainer typically doesn’t want to stop progressing in life. They still want to succeed and achieve things, even if they’re confused about how or feel discouraged about their current progress.

If you’re a chronic complainer, you might not realize how much the act of complaining is sabotaging you and your success. Here’s how constantly whining impedes you:

· It Keeps You In The Past

If you often find yourself complaining about past situations and events, the chances are that you’re still stuck there. You can’t change what has already passed, and complaining about it keeps you trapped in a world you’ve already left behind. This kind of rumination means you cannot devote your mind and body to the present – much less to the future.

· It Damages Confidence

Confidence is an essential part of progress. You need to believe in your capabilities and strengths to move forward. Complaining can often drain confidence, sapping at your self-esteem. Continually complaining about your life without ever making plans to change things will make you hate yourself. And the less you like yourself, the less you’ll believe that you can achieve great things!

· It Enhances Feelings Of Powerlessness

A chronic complainer often wastes a lot of time and effect whining about things outside their control. Eventually, this will start to get to them. If you’re in this position, feelings of helplessness have likely begun to overpower you. You might feel empty when faced with the futility of particular circumstances. Instead of focusing on what you can do, you’re focusing on what you can’t, so you never move. You can only see challenges and hurdles. Even if you put on a brave face, your focus will force you to spend your effort and concentration on the unchangeable.

· It Does Nothing Productive

Even if your complaining doesn’t actively harm you, it still doesn’t help you. This means you’re wasting time on complaints instead of doing something productive. It eats up your time and does nothing for your goals. You could spend this time doing something more positive that brings you closer to success!

3. Being a Chronic Complainer Harms Your Brain

Complaining can seem like a minor little action, so it’s hard to see how it can directly harm your brain. And it’s true – a little bit of complaining isn’t harmful. But a chronic complainer will hurt their brain and damage it in the long run with all their negativity and complaints.

Studies show how complaining all the time can cause the hippocampus to shrink. The hippocampus is the part of the brain that is crucial for numerous cognitive functions. These functions include memory, adaptability, and behavior. The hippocampus is also harmed the worst in most forms of dementia and neurodegeneration.

A shrinking hippocampus means you’ll wind up with long-term damage as a chronic complainer. The average individual complains up to thirty times per day. However, chronic venters can’t stop speaking their negative thoughts to anyone who will listen. Worse still, the same study showed that hearing someone complain can already cause problems in the brain.

In this way, complaining is a negative cycle. Chronic complainers attract negative people, who complain more in turn. The process of complaining perpetuates itself until everyone’s dealing with long-term damage to their brains due to all that yakking!

Why does this happen? It’s theorized that this is due to how easily you can rewire your brain. A chronic complainer has trained their brain to seek out negative things and amplify them. They continue to do that at a more and more severe rate. You essentially teach yourself to get better at being a downer! This also means:

You’re at a higher risk of developing depression and anxiety
You experience more stress every day that can further harm your brain
You get worse at regulating and properly managing emotions, so complaining becomes your only coping mechanism
Your situations get progressively worse instead of ever-improving

4. Being a Chronic Complainer Damages Your Relationships

We talked about how being a chronic complainer means attracting other people filled with negativity. On top of that, though, those in your life who aren’t fellow complainers will drift away from you. A chronic complainer creates an environment that feels hostile to positive people. You may notice this if:

· People Point Out The Complaining

Everyone complains now and then, and most social circles include a fair bit of people venting and complaining about. People are usually happy enough to listen to their friends whine, especially if you’re happy to hear to them in turn. So when people start to point out, whether seriously or jokingly, that you complain too much, it’s probably time to do some reflection.

· Everyone Around You Is A Chronic Complainer

Complaining attracts other complainers. There’s nothing wrong with a good whine session when someone’s going through a hard time. But if your friend groups are primarily focused on negativity all the time, there’s something wrong, and it needs to be addressed. Worse still, this won’t even help you all bond together. Studies show that exchanging negative attitudes, even when they’re shared, can damage relationships.

· People Start Avoiding You If You Are A Chronic Complainer

You used to spend time with many different people, but now your old friends and acquaintances don’t want to hang out. They may have stopped inviting you to places or might exclude you from certain events. It can hurt, and sometimes this isn’t necessarily your fault. But if you’ve already had these people talk to you about your complaining, then your chronic whining may have finally pushed them away. There’s nothing quite as upsetting as someone who keeps bringing the mood down with negativity. Speak to those who seem to avoid you and ask them what’s going on.

· Complaints Turn Into Competitions

When you complain about something, you notice that those in your social circle turn it into a misery competition. For example, if you talk about how tired you are, they’ll tell you how they’re much more tired than you. This goads you into one-upping them, and the whole thing turns into a pointless contest of suffering. This is a sign that you’re a chronic complainer who has attracted people who complain just as much. You’ve formed a closed circle where you reinforce each other’s negativity!

· You Complain About Your Relationships And Those In Them

This is the point where being a chronic complainer has also led to complete self-sabotage! Nobody wants to be friends with someone who backstabs them or talks negatively about them behind their back. If you catch yourself complaining about one of your friends to several other friends and keep doing that for different people, stop! Your chronic complaining has gone too far!

· You’re Overly Irritable

When you complain, you reinforce negativity in your mind, putting you in a constant state of irritability. This means you’re more likely to lash out at others and treat those around you poorly. This will undoubtedly harm your close relationships and will likely isolate you.

Final Thoughts On How Being A Chronic Complainer Causes Problems In Life

Complaining has its purpose, but it also has its time and place. Constantly venting and whining nonstop is a sign that you’re a chronic complainer. That outlook on life will only harm you and add problems to your life, so don’t get trapped in it!

8 Anxiety Reduction Strategies Never to Ignore

April 6, 2022 by Deborah Tayloe

If you’re one of the millions of people that suffer from anxiety in this country, then you’re constantly looking for ways to stop these uncomfortable feelings. Anxiety happens when you least expect it, and there’s often no rhyme or reason for why you feel this way. Thankfully, you should know that this is an easily treatable mental illness, and many people can live full and happy lives by utilizing anxiety reduction techniques.

While there’s often no root cause to your anxiety, it may stem from particular (albeit unknown) circumstances. If you’re under a great deal of chronic stress, it’s only natural to have high levels of tension and panic. Anxiety disorders are a broad spectrum too.

One person may hoard things to make them feel secure and help with their anxiety, while another may pull out their hair or become obsessed with unrealistic rituals. Since the spectrum is so broad, you never really know which way anxiety will affect you.

According to the Cleveland Clinic, you can develop a phobia, generalized anxiety disorder, social anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, or one of the many other conditions in this mental health category. The key is not to focus on the debilitating condition and how it makes you feel but to find ways to counteract and control this disorder.

Eight Anxiety Reduction Strategies

If you’re like most people, you don’t care how it got here or what caused it, but you want anxiety reduction strategies to make it go away. Below is a list of ways to control this mental health disorder.

These tips range from common therapeutic approaches to bizarre strategies, but the key is that they work. You might need to experiment and find the one that helps you the most.

1. Box Breathing as an Anxiety Reduction Technique

There are many ways and techniques to use your breathing to calm yourself. Some call it box breathing, which is where you inhale to the count of four, hold for four breaths, and then exhale slowly to the count of four. You can practice different strategies to see what works.

According to the Cleveland Clinic, box breathing works so well even the United States Navy Seals use it during their training and on the field. The key is that this form of breathing not only lowers your stress hormones, but it also lowers your blood pressure. You will start to feel better almost immediately when you use these tactics.

2. Get Out in the Fresh Air

The critical aspects of an anxiety attack are that it kicks the body into fight or flight mode. Now, you can stay and fight the feeling, but some people find that a change of scenery can stop things. For instance, the fresh air has a calming effect on you.

Have you ever been cooking in the winter and going outside to cool off? The icy air feels good on the body, and it can bring your body temperature into a normal range. There’s something therapeutic about going outside and breathing in the fresh air regarding anxiety reduction.

Even if it’s in the middle of summer, feeling the sun’s warm rays on your skin and the tranquility that nature provides is very healing.

3. Meditate for Anxiety Reduction

People meditate for many reasons, but one of the advantages is controlling anxiety and panic disorder. When you meditate, you cleanse your mind of all the negativity you pick up throughout your day. An anxiety disorder is often based on chronic worrying, so it can stop the anxiety when you learn how to keep your mind at ease.

This ancient art is a spiritual practice that harmonizes the mind-body and spirit. It’s great for chronic stress, and studies have shown that it’s very beneficial for those folks suffering from anxiety disorders.

A study cited on the National Library of Medicine shows an effective therapeutic strategy that showed remarkable results in an 8-week group intervention. The trial also found that it improved stress reactivity and coping skills.

4. Divert Your Mind

Sometimes all you need is a way to divert your mind. Your thoughts and feelings can change at a moment’s notice. One technique that works well involves the cell phone. If you start to feel your anxiety rising, you should grab your phone and play a game.

Focusing on the game and putting your energy into this will help to calm you. Since the brain can’t focus on two things simultaneously, it’s often easier to watch a video, chat with a friend, or play something. It’s a straightforward but effective technique.

5. Ground Yourself by Walking Barefoot

It’s effortless to become ungrounded when your world turns upside down. Anxiety can often make you feel like the rug has been pulled out from under you, but grounding exercises can allow you to regain your footing. Take your shoes off and walk around your yard.

Don’t just walk around aimlessly, but you need to feel the warmth or coldness of the earth between your toes. According to The Mind’s Eye, only 20 percent of the world’s population wears shoes on their feet. However, here in this country, shoes are essential.

The problem is that these shoes are blocking you from many therapeutic benefits. When you take off your shoes, it causes you to feel a sense of belonging, home, resilience, and security. There are pressure points on your feet that you stimulate when you walk, and the energy from the earth accelerates your body’s electrical activity.

6. Anxiety Reduction Using an Ice Bath

Using ice for anxiety is a simple concept, but the frigid temperature can stimulate the vagal nerve. According to Dr. Sharon Livingston, this method works because it activates the parasympathetic nervous system. Dunking your head in ice water, rubbing an ice cube on the wrists or back of the neck, and taking an ice bath can stop the fight-or-flight response.

If you have a heart condition, you shouldn’t try this method as it can be too much for the heart to handle. However, starting small with an ice cube to see how you do is advisable. You can work your way up, if necessary, to more extreme measures, like the ice bath.

7. Snap Your Wrist with a Rubber Band for Anxiety Reduction

Snapping your wrist with a rubber band is an anxiety reduction strategy based on the concept that the brain can’t focus on two things at once. If you’re in pain, your body will respond to that area and send white blood cells. When you have anxiety and pain simultaneously, the body will pick the most important of the two to “fix.”

Now, it’s essential that if you engage in this remedy, you know that the snap of the band must be light, as this is all it takes. If you’re leaving big marks or causing welts to appear, then you’re going overboard. Cutting is a poor strategy that many folks use for extreme anxiety, and it’s nothing but mutilation tactics. However, the rubber band technique can go to extremes and become self-harm if you’re leaving marks.

8. Emotional Freedom Technique or Tapping

Tapping involves touching pressure points throughout the body several times. It’s based on the principles of acupressure, which is where meridian lines or points are in the affected area. For anxiety, The Tapping Solution suggests that you tap 7-9 times on these points in the head, face, and chest.

When you bounce on these areas, you’re stimulating the amygdala area of your brain. This region controls your fight or flight response So you can use this anxiety reduction tool to calm it back to a normal range.

Final Thoughts on Anxiety Reduction Strategies

Dealing with anxiety is complicated at best. You want relief and hope that you never have to deal with it again. Sadly, one attack usually leads to more, and sometimes it can overcome you and become debilitating. Remember, you’re in control here and not this mental illness.

Since you’re in the driver’s seat, you can try many different things to bring relief. Everything on this list isn’t going to work for every person, and you may need to play around with methods through trial and error. The key is that if something doesn’t work for you the first time, it doesn’t mean it won’t work at all.

Anxiety is a fear-based condition where you believe and feel that threats are present that are not so. Sometimes your body gets stuck in the fight or flight mode when your stress hormones like cortisol are too high. While you need cortisol if you’re in danger to help you get to safety, it doesn’t do anything but wreak havoc on your nerves when there’s no danger present.

What methods have you tried for anxiety reduction, and were they effective? You can live an extraordinary life without fear when you learn to show anxiety that you are the boss.

15 Ways to Show Admiration Without Saying a Word

April 6, 2022 by Chris Butler

How often have you heard your actions speak louder than your words? What comes out of your mouth can be sugar, spice, and everything nice, but if your body language doesn’t align with the spoken word, it’s all a waste. Many people say they love one another but don’t show admiration.

Sure, part of loving someone is telling them how you feel. However, the other part of being in a relationship is demonstrating this love. You can show admiration for someone without ever opening your mouth.

You display true feelings that don’t get lost in the translation in many ways. For instance, it’s cold and snowy outside, and a husband starts his wife’s car and scrapes all the ice from it. So when she leaves for work, her car is toasty warm and ready to go.

Did he have to go out and scrape the ice and battle the elements for her? No! However, he did it because he loved her and didn’t want her to be cold and miserable. What about the wife that takes her husband lunch because she knows he’s so busy he won’t have time for a break that day?

All of these little things can add up and help to fill the love tank, which is essential if you want to make it for the long haul.

Fifteen Ways to Show Admiration Without Speaking

These little things you do each day reiterate your verbal statements. You probably already show admiration in many ways, but here are a few more to add to your list.

1. Show Admiration by Putting Down the Cell Phone

If your partner has something they want to talk about, put down your phone! Don’t scroll through social media as they speak. They shouldn’t have to compete with an electronic device for your attention.

If you go to the movies, dinner, or out with friends, leave the phone in the car or on vibrate. There’s nothing more important than the one that stole your heart. Flirt a little bit and make them feel like a teenager again.

2. Make an Effort with Their Family and Friends

Their family and friends predate your relationship, so these people are essential to the one you love. While you won’t always see eye-to-eye with others, make a conscious effort for your partner. A top reason couples seek counseling is trouble with in-laws.

He further states in his article that parents often have a hard time letting go of their children, and most of the backlash and controlling behavior stems from this issue. Look at the situation with fresh eyes and tell them you love their child and want to love them.

3. Leave Love Notes to Express Admiration

Why not let the loved one know you still have a crush on them? Whether you’re newly dating or married for twenty years doesn’t matter. If you want to spend the rest of your life with someone, you must find ways to let them know they’re still the one.

4. Support Them

If you want to show admiration to someone you love, be there for them for all the little things in their life. If they’re being honored at a dinner for their job, then you clear your schedule to show up. They need you to support them through the big and small things, and this goes far beyond lip service and saying you love them.

5. Ask About Their Day and How They’re Doing

When you admire someone, you care about the happenings of their life. Many folks use the “How was your day” question as a filler conversation for dinner time. However, when you love someone, you care about what happened in their day and how they’re doing.

6. Bring Them Breakfast in Bed

Songs have been written about the little things and their importance. A simple gesture like making breakfast in bed for them shows how much you care. You take time out of your day to make them feel special, and it’s a very kind act.

7. Turn on the PDA

Some people would prefer to keep public displays of affection to themselves. However, you must be considerate of the other person’s feelings. Your partner wants you to show the world that you’re not ashamed to be with them, and there’s nothing at that moment more important than feeling their touch and warm embrace.

8. Help Them Out

In a romantic relationship, you need to help one another. While it doesn’t seem like the stuff dreams are made of, having the support of your loved one means a lot.

If your partner struggles because of deadlines at work and other responsibilities, pitch in and help them out. Sometimes, you must get your hands dirty when you admire someone to make their lives easier.

9. Check in During the Day to Reveal Admiration

Find some time during the day to connect with text messaging. Even if it’s a funny meme or a joke you can’t wait to share, it shows you’re thinking about them. If you have a break or lunch hour at work, take a couple of minutes to check in with them during the day.

10. Make Time

You’re both busy, but you must make time for one another. You can show admiration by finding a way to be together. When people are dating, they will drive for many hours or fly across the world to see each other.

However, once you’re married or in a committed relationship, this shouldn’t change. If something is important to you, you will make time.

11. Use Spontaneity

Life can get pretty dull when everything is so routine and regimented. However, when you add a splash of pizzazz into the week, it shakes things up. A quick weekend away or a dinner at a fancy restaurant mid-week shows you can still turn on the charm for your crush.

12. Perform Acts of Service That Display Your Admiration

If you know anything about love languages, you know that some people need acts of service to fill their love tank. Doing little things, like a backrub, running a bubble bath, buying a new outfit, or making their favorite meal, can show how much you admire them.

According to Dr. Marni Amsellem from Psych Central, sometimes the most meaningful things in your relationship can’t be boxed with a pretty bow. She further states that doing little things for no other reason than “just because” can mean everything.

13. Make Their Dreams Come True

If you want to show admiration to someone you love, why not make their dreams come true? Maybe they dream of going to Italy and riding a Gondola down the Arno River. You win their hearts without saying a word when you take their highest hopes and dreams and make them a reality.

There’s an inner child inside each of you who wants someone to buy them the latest toy or take them on a memorable vacation. When you move mountains to make their dreams come true, you’ll capture their heart forever.

14. Write a Thank You Note

When did you last thank your significant other for all they do for you? Do they help keep the laundry clean, the house livable and go to work daily to provide money? Why not thank them for all these things?

So it’s not glamorous and doesn’t stand out as the most memorable thing to do, but it means a lot when you feel down and unappreciated. Hearing how proud you’re of them can show how much they’re admired.

15. Be a Good Listener

Why does it seem that listening to people requires so much work? When your significant other speaks to you, you must stop what you’re doing and engage. Being an active listener demonstrates that not only do you care about what they’re saying, but you’re taking time out of your day for them.

Final Thoughts on Ways to Show Admiration Silently

When you first start dating, you will flirt by playing footsie under the table, pouring affection, and doing anything to get them to commit. However, once you’ve been together for a while, you will find that things shift a bit.

When someone is by your side day in and day out, you slowly slip into a routine that can become mundane. You and your partner want to hear that you’re loved, but more than anything, you want someone to show you. Anybody can come up with beautiful words that seem like they were written for a card, but if there are no actions behind these sayings, they’re nothing more than words.

Things like holding the umbrella when it’s raining, doing all the chores so they can rest, or warming their clothes in the dryer on a cold day all show just how much they mean to you. Many relationships can’t survive without all these little things, as in the grand scale of things, they’re pretty substantial.

12 Benefits of Writing in a Positivity Journal Every Day

April 6, 2022 by Kristen Butler

Keeping a diary or journal-style recording of life events has been done since the dawn of time. Cave dwellers would carve pictures and leave these records for future generations to see their struggles and celebrations. Writing is a powerful tool, so have you ever considered keeping a positivity journal?

It’s possible that this optimistic writing style could change your life, and it can certainly alter your perspective of the world around you. The problem with journaling is that many people start it only to give it up a few days later, as it can sometimes be mundane. It would be best if you learned how beneficial it is to push through those times when you don’t want to do it.

The difference is that a positivity journal can inspire you and help you feel better. It’s an integral part of your self-care, and it can be beneficial for your overall health and well-being. Everyone benefits from keeping this style of an optimistic diary.

This is especially true of folks who are moody, have a negative mindset, and are often depressed, as they can find it even more helpful. Could this be the key to achieving a better perspective and developing a positive attitude?

Twelve Undeniable Benefits of Writing in a Positivity Journal

Journaling is known to help folks that suffer from anxiety disorders, like obsessive-compulsive disorder. Similar to depression, the encouraging results are well-documented. Here are some benefits to positive journaling for you to consider.

1. Keeping a Positivity Journal Enhances Your Creativity

Everyone has a creative side, but many folks need the inspiration to help them tap into it, and journaling can be that tool. When you get your creative juices flowing, you can bring a healing calm to yourself. Why do you think people paint, learn to play musical instruments, and craft?

Writing is another form of creativity, and greats like Mark Twain, Ernest Hemingway, and Agatha Christie, learned that writing could also be very profitable. Your imagination can be beneficial in many aspects of life, and journaling is a way to get started.

2. Releases Pent-up Feelings

Part of your emotional well-being is learning how to release your pent-up feelings. As you go through life, you carry a heavy load of stress. It doesn’t matter how much money you have or where you live; stress is inevitable.

However, journaling allows you a great outlet to get rid of those frustrations to develop a more positive mindset.

3. Writing in a Positivity Journal Improves Gratitude

You can make your writings part of a gratitude journal too. Taking the time to write down five things a day that you’re grateful for will change your outlook. Instead of always focusing on how bad things are when you start looking at the good side, it will alter your perceptions.

4. Change Your Mood

Do you wish that you could be in a better mood? A positivity journal may be just what you need to help boost your spirits. When you write down the things you’re thankful for, your goals, and your blessings, it can’t help but change how you feel.

Someone who dwells on the negative all the time will be pessimistic. However, the optimistic person will have a better outlook on life and an enhanced mood.

5. Prove Your Progress and Personal Growth with a Positivity Journal

A daily journal can be like a roadmap; there’s no right or wrong way to do it. You can set up your writings however you wish. This book can be imperative if you’re making a weight loss journey or achieving sobriety.

You can keep track of where you start and monitor your progress. You can look back through these writings and see the things you’ve overcome and how far you’ve been. It can be terrific for your psyche to see progress, which is one thing positivity journaling can provide.

6. Improve Your Quality of Life

Whatever you want to call it, taking time out of your day to sit alone and practice gratitude can significantly improve life quality. Scientists have even reported that writing down five things you’re thankful for every day can dramatically improve your outlook.

If you want an extraordinary life, you need this time to put everything else aside and focus on yourself. Find a comfortable space to sit alone and look at all the good things happening to you. Remember, since this is a positivity journal, you want to focus on the positive aspects.

When you write things in this book like:

“I got an unexpected pay raise today.”
“My kids picked me wildflowers and made me a handmade card.”
“I had a great day at work, and everything went my way.”
“I made a memorable dinner with all the trimmings, and my family loved it.”

Again, you can set up your journal however you like it, but the key here is that you’re creating positive memories. One day, when you look back on this list, you will see the little things that make your life so unique.

When you have times when the world seems cruel, and you don’t feel like you can go another day, reading things like these entries above can recharge your spirit.

7. Improves Physical Health

Who knew that keeping a gratitude journal could impact your health? First, writing about your blessings will help you have a sense of calm about yourself. It will allow you to handle stress better and help keep things like hypertension, headaches, and heart disease at bay.

Did you know that you can help control blood sugar with these writings? According to a study by the Journal of Positive Psychology, folks who use positivity journaling could lower their HbA1c levels within months.

8. A Positivity Journal Promotes Spiritual Growth

When you work to maintain a positive mindset, you become grateful for every cycle you experience. Learning to embrace those tough times can significantly impact your mental stress. Once you realize that hardship promotes growth, it changes your outlook when struggles come your way.

Through positive journaling and this process, many people realize the need for divine guidance and power more significant to help them. Using the timeline that this book provides shows that it’s been there all along.

9. You Increase Self-Esteem if You Keep a Positivity Journal

If you want a better mood, you need to start using a daily journal to enhance your self-esteem. It’s hard to stay in a poor air after reminding yourself of your worth. A study reported by Science Direct proves that people who engaged in body-focused positivity writing had a better overall view of themselves.

Additionally, there was less prejudice about weight, and people learned to accept themselves as they are. Participants became more accepting of themselves and those around them.

10. Improves Relationships

When was the last time someone acknowledged your accomplishments at home or work? How did you feel when you received this praise? It feels fantastic to be recognized for your contributions, but did you know that it can help you to improve your relationships?

It sounds bizarre that being praised helps with relationships. Consequently, some believe it demonstrates that giving and receiving gratitude gives you a deeper connection with people. It can improve your romantic relationships as well as those with coworkers.

11. You Sleep Better

Part of your emotional well-being is hinged on you getting sufficient rest. A study conducted by the National Library of Medicine found that people who express their gratitude and live with a positive mindset get better rest at night. There’s nothing worse than tossing and turning just to get a few hours of shut-eye.

12. Writing in a Positivity Journal Enhances Mental Well-Being

The decision to have a positive mindset will have an overwhelming effect on your mental health. According to the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, folks who wrote in a positivity journal daily had a more optimistic outlook for their future. The mental health benefits of keeping such a diary impact your physical body and mind.

12 things you should always track in your positivity journal

Here are some ideas to help you start journaling.

1. Track the Day’s Events in Your Positivity Journal

Whether big or small, keeping track of events is a great way to see what a typical day in your life looks like. As you remember these events, you may feel prompted to write how the event made you feel. For instance, if you went to a park during your lunch break, you might note how pleasant it was to sit in the sunshine for twenty minutes while you ate your sandwich. Even if the event seems mundane, it’s still significant because it was part of your day.

2. Make a Note of Any Challenges You Face

Be sure to write any challenges you faced during the day. Again, they can be big or small events. Perhaps someone was rude to you at the grocery, or you lost the car keys, and it took an hour to find them. Whatever your challenges, write them down in your positivity journal. Remember, you’re not alone. Everyone faces challenges in their daily life. Here are some everyday challenges everyone faces at some point in their life that challenge their positivity.

Feeling isolated at work or school.
Unsure about future; can’t decide about career or schooling, maybe need to change jobs.
No time to rest or relax. Family or work can be consuming. Feel you never get a break.
Financial pressures; not making ends meet financially or being in debt.
Over-committed: You give to saying yes all the time.
Relationship problems with family or friends. These struggles can wear you down.
Poor self-care: You don’t feel your best when you don’t eat right or exercise.
Being around negative people: You feel like the people around you don’t support you but pull you down.

3. Remember Positive Events of the Day

In light of the challenges you recorded, what positive steps did you take to overcome them? Maybe you ignored the rude person or turned on your favorite music while looking for your car keys. Whatever you did to get through the challenge, write it down.

4. Add Your Daily Accomplishments to a Positivity Journal

As you reflect on the day, look for your achievements that you can be proud of. They don’t need to be earth-shaking to be significant and meaningful. Maybe you finished reading a biography of someone you admire or organized the linen closet in your bathroom. Other things you could write:

Taking small steps to complete a project or begin a new project
Going to the gym for the first time in months
Eating healthy for an entire day
Making the dreaded phone call to talk to someone you needed to connect with
Making a doctor’s appointment, you’d been putting off
Getting the courage to tell someone you can’t do something instead of saying yes automatically

5. Keep Track of Your Exercise and Physical Activities

Record your physical activities, such as any sports you play, exercises you do, or long walks you take. Please record how long you did the training and whether or not you enjoyed it. Ways to get more physical exercise without even trying.

Park farther away from the store, so you need to walk farther.
Skip the elevator and walk up the stairs
Walk your dog
Walk to your friend’s house
While you’re at your child’s sporting events, walk around
Walk at the golf course instead of driving a golf cart
Ride your bike to the store

6. Remember to be Grateful

Write what you are grateful for today. Maybe you’re grateful to be pain-free today, thankful to see your family, or you can work remotely today. Focusing on gratitude can change your outlook on life.

A study at the University of Miami had one group of people record things they were grateful for during their week. A second group wrote their daily irritating situations or something they didn’t like each day. The third group of people wrote about events that happened to them, not bad or good, just what happened. After two and a half months of doing this, the researchers found that the people who wrote about what they were grateful for were more optimistic, didn’t focus on their problems as much, and didn’t go to the doctor. In general, these people were happier than the other groups.

Other ways you focus on gratitude each day include:

Thank someone today-Specifically thank someone today. You can do this in person or through an email or text. Tell them how you appreciate what they do. Explain how what they do makes your life and the lives of others better.
Pray for someone-Talk to God about this person. Thank him for creating them.
Practice mindfulness-Focus on the moment of your day and what you’re incredibly grateful for at that moment.

7. Share Your Thoughts on How Music Impacts Your Mood

Keep a record of any music you listened to today that enhanced your positive thinking. Usually, happy music makes you feel better. The upbeat tune and lyrics help your brain release chemicals that improve your mood. Consider creating a playlist of upbeat songs that make you optimistic about life. Listen to these songs when you’re down or need a boost in your day.

8. Note Anything That Delights You in a Positivity Journal

Who made you laugh out loud today? Was it a guy on TikTok? Or maybe your co-worker did something that made you laugh. Whoever it was, write about the experience in your positivity journal. When you reread this, no doubt just remembering it will give you a chuckle.

9. Reflect on Whether You Are Flexible or Resilient

Were you flexible today when you found out a coworker didn’t reserve the restaurant for a birthday lunch like they said they would? Were you resilient enough to find another place to eat, so the birthday lunch still happened? Life throws you surprise all the time. Flexibility means you can re-adjust when needed when there is a sudden change. Unexpected problems don’t cause you to fall apart, but you recover quickly and get the job done.

10. Think About the Tasty Foods You Ate to Instill Gratitude

It’s basic, but why not write about the foods you ate today in your positivity journal? Perhaps you tried something new and found out you like it. Or maybe you had dinner at your grandma’s, and she served your favorite casserole. If you savored each comforting bite, it’s worth writing about.

11. Release Negative Residue from the Day

So, what wasn’t your favorite thing today? Maybe you had to run errands and hate doing that. Or perhaps it was going to the dentist or taking your dog to the groomers. Everybody has their not-so-favorite things. Why not write about it to release the negative residue?

12. Explain What Made You Happy

What was something you enjoyed today? Maybe you took your kids to the pool, and it was fun chatting with other moms about your kids. Or perhaps you went to the gym with a buddy for the first time in months, and it was good to get caught up. Whatever the activity, write about how it made you feel.

Final Thoughts on the Benefits of Writing in a Positivity Journal

It’s easy to see that keeping a positivity journal comes with massive benefits. This powerful practice will help you be a better person and feel better. Journaling can enhance your mental, physical, spiritual, and emotional well-being and help you build resilience.

You can improve relationships with your partner, children, coworkers, and the divine, as well as reduce your stress levels. You can improve your self-esteem, learn to be more accepting of others, and be thankful for all the gifts received in life.

While you should strive to write in this journal every day, at least a few times a week will suffice. The important part is to get that pent-up anxiety and stress out of your heart and mind into a positivity journal. This little book is a roadmap of the times you won and the times you’ve lost, but most importantly, it’s a reminder that you’re resilient.

Researchers Reveal Which Exercise Is the Best To Relieve Chronic Anxiety

April 6, 2022 by Kristen Lawrence

Studies show that intensive exercise can help relieve symptoms of chronic anxiety. Of course, this doesn’t mean training provides a universal answer for mental health problems. Many other factors contribute to anxiety, such as stress levels, eating habits, brain chemistry, careers, and home life. However, exercising can provide a buffer against the stresses of modern life.

Anxiety often makes people feel paralyzed or afraid for no apparent reason. This feeling can strike unexpectedly, making them feel like they have no control over their mind. Exercise helps to boost confidence and release built-up tension, which eases anxiety temporarily. Over time, these cumulative effects can lead to increased mental resilience and perhaps total relief of anxiety.

How Intensive Exercise Helps Relieve Chronic Anxiety

Chronic anxiety doesn’t discriminate; it can affect anyone at various stages in life. Since our brains haven’t fully evolved for this modern world, many people experience anxiety. We’re no longer scanning the horizon for predators, but we have many other problems.

Since we live more sedentary lifestyles than our ancestors, these stresses accumulate in our bodies. Over time, it overwhelms our nervous systems and can cause chronic anxiety. However, perhaps we should look to the past to answer our mental health epidemic. Moving our bodies can reduce anxiety because it provides an outlet for excess energy.

Research shows that intensive exercise, such as aerobic activities, can help treat anxiety. High-intensity workouts may include running, biking, dancing, brisk walking, or swimming. It’s essential to choose something you can stick with long-term to reap the full benefits.

How Working Out Can Help Alleviate Anxious Feelings

Exercising helps relieve anxiety by:

Take the attention off your thoughts and onto an activity.
Reducing muscle tension, where most anxiety and stress get stored.
Increasing your heart rate alters brain chemicals. Intensive exercise floods the brain with neurotransmitters such as serotonin, gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), and endocannabinoids.
Activating frontal regions of the brain govern executive function, including the amygdala. Exercise helps strengthen neural circuits in this part of the brain, effectively reducing anxiety.
Increases self-efficacy, which makes a person less prone to anxious feelings.

Best Intensive Exercise to Reduce Anxiety Symptoms

So, you know that intensive exercise can help you feel less anxious and more relaxed. However, choosing the best exercises to relieve anxiety is not always easy. Luckily, experts have found that a few exercises reign supreme when easing anxious feelings.

Running boosts norepinephrine, a neurotransmitter that increases focus and alertness. It also releases endorphins, feel-good hormones responsible for the “runner’s high.” It can also enhance mental clarity because of increased oxygen in the prefrontal cortex. After just one running session, they were notable but increased with regular exercise.
Hiking or walking in the woods. When you’re surrounded by nature, it’s easy to forget about all the daily worries. Green spaces have been proven to lower anxiety, blood pressure, and heart rate because nature soothes the senses. In a Japanese study published in Environmental Health and Preventive Medicine, researchers told participants to walk in either a forest or city for 20 minutes. They found that those who walked in the woods had lower cortisol than those who went on an urban walk.
Yoga combines breathing techniques with specific postures to calm the mind and reduce stress. While some types of yoga are slower-paced, others offer intensive exercise. In 2012, a research team studied the impact of yoga on anxiety and stress. They reviewed trials and published the results in Alternative Medicine Review. In 25 of the 35 studies, participants noticed a significant decline in anxiety and stress levels after yoga practice.

Since many people don’t like taking anxiety medications, exercise provides an excellent natural remedy. The list above isn’t exhaustive by any means. Still, it can offer some ideas for a workout routine. In addition to intensive exercise, other lifestyle changes can ease chronic anxiety.

Other Ways to Lower Anxiety Levels

Give technology a break. We’re overstimulated with all our technology, between phones, computers, TVs, and other gadgets. Our minds need a break, so make sure to allot time each day for true rest. Many people use their downtime to scroll on social media or binge-watch a show, but this doesn’t relax your mind. To truly experience peace, it’s essential to shut everything off sometimes.
Eat a balanced diet. Our diets impact our mental health in profound ways. Studies have linked processed foods high in artificial sweeteners, sugar, gluten, and inflammatory omega-6 fatty acids to anxiety. On the other hand, eating a balanced diet full of fresh fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, and omega-3 fatty acids protects mental health.
Get your beauty rest. Today, many people suffer from chronic sleep deprivation, worsening anxiety, and depression. Put yourself first and make sure you’re sticking to a regular sleep schedule. Notifications on your phone or favorite TV show can always wait until the following afternoon.
Live a slower-paced life. To put it bluntly, we’re not designed for such a fast pace of life. Don’t feel inadequate or ashamed if you can’t or don’t want to keep up. Your mental health should come first, so if you feel overwhelmed, consider downsizing to reduce monthly bills. If you have less to pay for, you’ll have more free time and fewer mental burdens.

Final Thoughts on Engaging in Intensive Exercise to Reduce Chronic Anxiety

In recent years, anxiety levels have skyrocketed due to several factors. The pandemic, financial worries, climate change, career stress, and daily life, in general, have contributed to the mental health crisis. However, studies have shown that intensive exercise may help reduce anxiety symptoms. In addition to other lifestyle factors such as eating well, prioritizing sleep, and embracing minimalism, it’s possible to manage anxiety.

Of course, exercise and lifestyle changes don’t permanently eliminate anxiety for everyone. Many people find relief with medication, therapy, and natural remedies.

Weekly tips, affirmations, and small actions to feel your best.

Every day is a day to shine. Shine on!