I find chapter 2 similar to chapter 4 where the \u201cconscientious and prudent\u201d of the former are similar to the \u201cserious\u201d participants of the latter. Not surprising of this book\/study, researchers found that the positive characteristics, in this case those with a more cheerful and optimistic personality\/outlook, were actually correlated with lesser longevity compared to those with the (subjectively) \u201cless\u201d desirable outlook (e.g. seriousness). Perhaps my favorite quote from chapter 4 comes early on, on page 34, \u201cHealthy people are happy but happy people are not necessarily healthy.\u201d The reality is that often times the cause of happiness and healthiness are due to other factors, rather than the two being completely contingent on one another. This is why we see millions in the US alone who are obese but who is to say they are not happy\u2014because many of them are. Ironically for many, the comfort and contentment some have with their bodies and eating what they please and maintaining that unhealthy lifestyle is what keeps many happy. This illusory optimism, this \u201cThis is what makes me happy and I\u2019ve made it thus far while doing it, I think I\u2019ll be fine\u2026\u201d is what results in shorter lifespans because the unhealthy lifestyle is normalized in their mind.<\/p>\n
This topic hits home for me because both of my parents are overweight. My brother and I are both division one athletes and have been health conscious, superiorly active individuals since middle school. Our father, who at one point was a body builder and leaner and stronger than my brother or I have ever been in our lives, is the one who taught us much of what we know in regards to eating healthy\u2014yet he continues to eat poorly now. Our mother knows she should workout more but she figures she\u2019ll be fine because she doesn\u2019t eat \u201cthat much\u201d anymore, but she still eats desserts almost everyday\u2026 I\u2019ll stop before I go further, I love my parents but I can\u2019t help but worry. My brother and I try to help, but just haven\u2019t yet broken through to them holistically unfortunately.<\/p>\n
This worry I mentioned brings me to catastrophizing (as mentioned in chapter 5), which I personally do have a tendency to do occasionally, but at the same time, I am still a rather cheerful, optimistic guy\u2026 Which before reading this book, I would have thought is a good thing because the two offset, right? But apparently I\u2019m crippling my longevity by the second, so after some introspection and perhaps some meditation I\u2019ll see what I can change so I can stay alive longer. That said, if you\u2019re reading this, please do not fear that I would ever consider the great extremes that some of the Terman participants apparently chose. I\u2019m not even going to name the action because I can\u2019t fathom such an ending for my life. When I say I \u201ccatastrophize\u201d sometimes, I mean like I might shed a gangster tear or two when I do poorly on an exam or assignment of some sort; I\u2019ll feel pretty low and perhaps be much less talkative for the rest of the day at the longest, but then I go to sleep and wake up happy and ready to face the world again for a new day. At that point, it is in the past and it is important to use failures as learning points. If sleep stops working as an antidote then I might have a problem but until then, we\u2019re good.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
I find chapter 2 similar to chapter 4 where the \u201cconscientious and prudent\u201d of the former are similar to the \u201cserious\u201d participants of the latter. Not surprising of this book\/study, researchers found that the positive characteristics, in this case those … Continue reading