Therapist and Positive Living Expert, Diane Lang, has given us hope! As my recent guest on Anger 9-1-1, Diane shared her knowledge and expertise on anger, stress, optimistic living, and happiness. I wholeheartedly agree with Diane when she says moods and attitudes are contagious. Spend some time with a negative or depressed person and you’ll discover how easy it is to become infected by their attitude. What began as a good day rapidly digresses into a miserable and unpleasant experience. But all is not lost! It is possible to inoculate yourself against negativity and maintain your happiness.

Diane suggests that if you want more happiness in your life, follow these few simple rules:

1. Make sure your basic needs are being met. Whether nutritionally, emotionally, financially, spiritually, physically, etc. take care in getting what is essential for your well-being. This includes getting at least six to seven hours of sleep per night and exercising regularly. Keep a Journal of Truth. Log your activities each day for a week. Then take a few moments to review it and check for missing needs. This will allow you to incorporate them in your daily routine.

2. Remove toxic people from your life. Surround yourself with positive, upbeat, happy people and you will find yourself absorbing their attitudes.

3. Live in the moment. Too often, we get stuck in the past: the what if’s, the I should have’s, the why’s. Learn from the past but let go of it. And don’t worry about the future. The future is filled with unknowns and we tend to project the worst which leads to anxiety and worry. Plan for tomorrow but live for today. Put everything into perspective. Only deal with what is present to you at this precise moment. That’s enough for now. Otherwise it’s easy to overwhelm yourself.

4. Express how you feel. Don’t bottle your emotions up inside of you. Learn healthy ways to share them. Then process and heal each one.

5. Laugh and smile. Never underestimate the power of humor. Not only does it make us feel better but it also keeps us physically healthier.

Optimistic people recover quicker from issues, see things in a more positive light, heal more rapidly from illnesses, have healthier relationships, experience greater success, and overall, enjoy life to a greater degree. And the good news is: you can learn to be more positive. So, here’s to your happiness!

To learn more about Diane Lang, visit her website at www.dlcounseling.com or email her at Lifeline36@aol.com.