Side Effects Include...
photo credit: Tina Rataj-Berard/Unsplash
Can You Turn Off the News?
I can’t.
I just want to know what’s going to happen next. Is that so bad?
According to my wife, it IS that bad. She can’t take it anymore. And she certainly doesn’t want to process it with me. Betsy says, “Just tell me how it turns out.”
In my quest to stay on top of the news, especially the political news out of Washington, I pay a DEAR price.
In my busy life, most of my news comes through a TV app on my phone. And that app tirelessly advertises a smoking-cessation pill using the same commercial at EVERY commercial break.
Sometimes, to add insult to injury, they repeat the same commercial twice within the same break. Probably 20 times each day, I endure an animated turkey giving up cigarettes with the same backing music over and over and over again. The commercial haunts my dreams.
I keep my phone face-down in the car but I admit that I have almost swerved out of my lane in my haste to turn down the volume when that mind-numbing, GD guitar-strumming starts.
I’ve also memorized the potential side effects of the drug, including my favorite: “new or worse heart or blood vessel problems can happen with….” First of all, what does “can happen with” mean? That sounds almost coincidental, although I’m sure it was the brainchild of some late-night brainstorm between the research team and their law firm.
Secondly, “new or worse heart or blood vessel problems”? Really? Then the announcer pauses after all this potential carnage, adopts an optimistic tone, like a kind neighbor, and suggests, “Ask your doctor about….” Really?
Ask them WHAT, exactly?
I feel like I know all that I need to know.
Oy! Never mind. I take it back. Before I posted this, I googled to make sure I had the language right and, guess what? I found my new fav!
“Some people have had new or worse mental health problems, such as changes in behavior or thinking, aggression, hostility, agitation, depressed mood, or suicidal thoughts or actions while taking or after stopping ….”
Now I’m DEFINITELY in.
I don’t care if I never smoked.
Give me a script!
If you want to start something healthier, with a lot more upside potential, you should come check out “Let it GO!” or “Find Your Tribe” or “Get Focused” at super.BUILD.
photo credit: bigstockphoto
These three new Positive Psychology programs cause the following negative side effects:
Yep, that’s it.
Wanna hear that list again?
Me:
How about positive side effects from applying Positive Psychology to your life? Here are a few (and I have more to come).
Announcer voice:
Side effects include an enhanced sense of mindfulness, strengthening of your focusing muscle, and (lab-proven) improved health outcomes.
People who apply Positive Psychology research may also experience a greater level of empathy with those they love, or even just like. Flexing character strengths like gratitude and honesty (there are 24 in total) may create an “upward spiral.”
That upward spiral can include greater mental acuity, increased connection with others, and has even been shown in lab research to broaden your “scope of awareness,” essentially expanding your positive outlook.
But you don’t have to take it from me (and lab-tested findings).