Improving your posture can help improve your mental state. Though studies are few, there does seem to be a link between how you carry yourself physically and how you feel emotionally. If you spend your days hunched over, your shoulders pulled forward, and your head hanging down, you might want to consider improving your posture. It’s not a cure-all, but it can help change your frame of mind. At the very least, you’ll look better — which can pay social, physical, and financial dividends.
Look Skinnier, Taller
In one study, researchers found that women who stood up straight looked younger and more attractive then their slumping counterparts. Subjects in the study thought that a 125 pound model with good posture looked thinner then a 105 pound model with bad posture.
Meanwhile, men with poor posture can look taller and more confident simply by learning how to carry themselves properly. It’s no secret that taller men are more likely to be promoted, or that shorter police officers are more likely to meet with resistant suspects. People respect height, and walking tall is an easy way of adding an inch to your frame.
Use it or lose it
You might also want to keep the following in mind: men and women who fail to improve their posture are at risk of losing inches later in life. Good posture can help prevent you from growing shorter in your golden years.
How can you improve your posture? You’ve got a few options at your disposal. Yoga, pilates, stretching, or lifting weights will all do the trick. You might also want to consider meeting with an Alexander Technique practitioner, who can give you some one-on-one advice for getting your body back in order.
Posture is an essential, though sometimes neglected, aspect of our personal health. Better posture can lead to better health over all, so it’s important not to ignore it.
According to the American Academy of Family Physicians, up to twenty percent of people suffer from seasonal affective disorder, also known as SAD, with about six percent of cases being severe. I’ll caution that the exact numbers are currently unknown, and that the numbers of cases for winter depression vary depending on how rigorous the study was and where the study was taken. Canadians, for example, are much more likely to be diagnosed with the condition than are Americans. What we know for certain is that SAD is a very real and common condition, and that it makes the winter season a miserable one for millions of people.
SAD Symptoms
Not everyone experiences SAD in the same way. Some symptoms are more pronounced in certain sufferers than they are in others. Personal genetics and environmental factors play a role in shaping how people experience seasonal affective disorder. With that out of the way, the following list of symptoms will give you an idea of some of the things SAD sufferers might experience:
- Unwanted weight gain
- Constant fatigue
- Lethargy
- Feeling irritated
- Carbohydrate cravings
- Decreased interest in sex
- Mood swings
- Feelings of apathy and depression
- The Posts of 2008
- In 2009, I resolve to be…
- A diet of happy thoughts
- Misery Around The Web
- Daily meditation stops wandering thoughts
- Quackery, Pseudoscience, and You.
- Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT)
- Personal Stories and Interviews, a round-up
- The Power of Posture
- Beating Seasonal Affective Disorder
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