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DCMcDonald t1_iu06uv2 wrote

Hi Dr. Lee! Hope all is well!

I'm curious to learn more about how optimism affects an individual’s physical and mental health. Can you go into more detail on this? Looking forward to reading your insights. :)

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BUExperts OP t1_iu0b3fk wrote

Thank you for your question. In a nutshell, higher levels of optimism have been linked to lower risks of poor physical health outcomes, such as developing heart disease and dying from chronic diseases; higher optimism levels have also been linked to more favorable physical health outcomes, such as living longer and staying healthy in old age (defined as not having memory complaints, chronic disease, major physical limitations, and living beyond age 65).

Psychologically, more optimistic people tend to have better emotional well-being (that is, higher levels of positive emotions and lower levels of negative emotions), even when faced with stressful situations like a major medical diagnosis. When dealing with stressors, more optimistic people tend to think of the situation as challenging rather than threatening, and they are less likely to feel helpless or hopeless.

One caveat is that scientists can not yet definitively say optimism *causes* good health because most of the data have come from observational studies - that is, scientists compared more versus less optimistic people on their health outcomes. A rigorous scientific approach will involve, for example, using randomized clinical trials to test the causal effect of increasing optimism levels on health in the long run.

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AlecTheDalek t1_iu0iccg wrote

Is it possible that optimistic people are optimistic because they are in generally better health?

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Llaine t1_iu0vwsp wrote

Yes. Everything said there reads like "study finds wealthy people have more stuff"

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lukeman3000 t1_iu35av9 wrote

This is exactly what a pessimist would say and that's why you won't live past 65.

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lukeman3000 t1_iu355h4 wrote

>even when faced with stressful situations like a major medical diagnosis.

is that not somewhat at odds with this statement?

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DoinTheBullDance t1_iu0hs2w wrote

Is there any way to become an optimist if you have pessimistic tendencies?

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Additional-Ability99 t1_iu2bmnt wrote

Your brain is like a forest. If you walk the same paths over and over, they become trodden, and easier to walk. Your neurons will fire down those paths more easily. Pick new paths and walk those instead, and let the old ones become overgrown and disappear over time. It takes active practice, active benefit-finding. If you want a free podcast regarding methods for this, and how the brain works, I recommend

https://www.udemy.com/share/101DxI3@GJGN4AkzRXPwfCcyrHjyxSe0wkxcYcXS-DHuBOPMukTo4ih__hpcvGeqFpGSIwqRjQ==/

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jrcsmith t1_iu3zg71 wrote

Does anyone know what the podcast recommendation is? The link doesn’t direct me to one

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banjaxed_gazumper t1_iu0xiy2 wrote

Yes definitely. Most of your thought patterns are just habits. You can change your mental habits through repetition. One of the simplest forms of this is repeating a phrase.

Find a few triggers that will remind you to repeat a positive phrase (silently or out loud it doesn’t really matter). The triggers might be every time you brush your teeth, every time you notice yourself feeling stressed, while you’re in the shower, before and after sleep, and every time you check Reddit instead of working.

Every time these triggers happen, take a moment to repeat your phrase. It can be something like “I’m feeling really happy and optimistic” or “I’m pretty sure everything is going to work out great” or “I am so happy because of all the great things going on in in my life”. Smile really big and maybe do a big fake jolly laugh if you can.

It doesn’t matter if you actually believe these things or not. Simply thinking them trains your mind to be optimistic. It gets into the habit of thinking these positive thoughts.

This same thing works for all kinds of negative thought patterns. Whatever you wish your brain would think, just force it to think that a bunch of times on purpose and after a few weeks of training it will just be your genuine default thought pattern.

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juandelpueblo939 t1_iu10fe1 wrote

Can we let the OP doing the AMA answer this instead? Thank you.

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WhiteTshirtDad t1_iu1e8zh wrote

What are you, new to reddit? Relax. We don't need you to police this thread.

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banjaxed_gazumper t1_iu11ghx wrote

😂 ok I’ll allow OP to answer

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juandelpueblo939 t1_iu11iuu wrote

Are you the subject matter expert?

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banjaxed_gazumper t1_iu11tav wrote

Relax. It’s ok for people to have a conversation. OP can still respond.

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juandelpueblo939 t1_iu127rq wrote

No, you’re not the subject matter expert. Out here you’re might misinforming people, and giving unqualified advice like you’re an licensed therapist; which you haven’t proven you are. Is not only unethical, but also ilegal in many countries. So please, stay in your lane and let the qualified expert speak. Just because you have an opinion doesn’t mean its a valid one.

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banjaxed_gazumper t1_iu14l7k wrote

Ok I won’t tell anyone else to think positive thoughts. I don’t want to go to jail.

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juandelpueblo939 t1_iu1697r wrote

See, you’re here spewing nonsense and by the likes you’re getting, people are buying it. And to you it’s all a joke! This is the danger of allowing people like you who aren’t qualified to misinform others; specially with a topic so sensitive like mental health. That’s why when professionals in their field try to correct garbage, they are met with resistance and dismissal. But go right ahead, keep up misinforming the masses for the likes.

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SwordzRus t1_iu2y3l3 wrote

>So please, stay in your lane and let the qualified expert speak. Just because you have an opinion doesn’t mean its a valid one.

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juandelpueblo939 t1_iu4453d wrote

I’m not the one giving opinions on the subject matter with out any qualifications. But please, keep the strawman argument coming.

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diMario t1_iu24df2 wrote

The pessimist: "Wow! Things are so bad, they can't get much worse".

The optimist: "Nah, don't you worry. They can get much worse!"

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Lemonsnot t1_iu0mz71 wrote

How do you respond to people who believe pessimism is actually seeing reality and optimism is either choosing to ignore reality or (more crudely) a symptom of stupidity?

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EightEyedCryptid t1_iu2y9ct wrote

Personally I find it is (somewhat) about surrendering control. Can I fix the huge problems in the world? Absolutley not. But I can work with what I have, and I can strengthen my community.

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banjaxed_gazumper t1_iu0xvri wrote

I would rather live a long happy healthy life than “see reality”. If someone I cared about was pessimistic I would try to convince them to change their outlook so that they don’t die as soon.

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Shivy_Shankinz t1_iu1y05b wrote

I think we all would. But some of us can't hide from reality once they see it. Sometimes reality just hits deeper than others I'd say

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lukeman3000 t1_iu363nb wrote

I don't see it as hiding from reality. I see it as accepting reality. I don't see optimism and realism as mutually exclusive concepts.

Easy for me to say having not endured a fraction of the percentage of hardship that some have, but so far I think I've done pretty well in this regard.

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Shivy_Shankinz t1_iu4nsft wrote

Yes, accepting certain realities is not easy. Why should we have to accept realities that are wrong or evil in this world. Those realities simply carry more weight for some than others, whether they accept them or not

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falafelwaffle55 t1_iu3blv5 wrote

Yeah, reality unfortunately is very harsh, "life isn't fair" and all that. I find the silver lining in things when I can so I wouldn't say I'm super pessimistic, but when you've seen people you love die, watched people harm themselves and been harmed yourself, it's hard to say "everything will be okay". Because "okay" depends on what it is you desire

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Shivy_Shankinz t1_iu4p1ek wrote

That's right. Something shifts inside once we have to endure or experience those types of realities. The shifts will be different for everyone, how we respond will be different.

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falafelwaffle55 t1_iu3bfhs wrote

Pessimist response: "well, I've probably already done the damage" lol

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supertexter t1_iu0jxe3 wrote

Thanks for this and the note about causality limitations. Could you expand on how big these effects are? With a large sample a statistically significant effect may not be significant in terms of living life. Would be interesting to know!

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Shivy_Shankinz t1_iu1xsxo wrote

I think optimism is a consequence of an already healthy, happy life. That's why it may never be proven to cause good health

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falafelwaffle55 t1_iu3bcr4 wrote

Hmmm I'd be interested to know how one could retrain the brain to see situations as challenging instead of threatening, even if they have experienced a number of genuinely life-threatening situations. I used to be addicted to drugs, so quite often one "mistake" i.e relapse, truly meant the loss of absolutely everything. It's hard to not feel like everything you do is all or nothing when that's what your rock bottom is.

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DCMcDonald t1_iu0ek3v wrote

Thank you for your thoughtful response, Dr. Lee!

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in_a_cage_brb t1_iu4ei2v wrote

I'm generally optimistic about most things, but I become pessimistic when it comes to my health. Well--more than that, really. I'm quite paranoid about it. How would that work then?

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