Micro-acts are not complicated or burdensome. It is recommended that older adults give themselves simple little gifts, such as a foot massage. It's an easy thing anyone can do.
Health is the first wealth is a philosophy that has been around for centuries. However, health now refers to body, spirit and mind in a different way than it did before the age of technology. Mental health experts say we all have "joy resources" and we need to manage them properly.
Valentina Ogaryan, clinical director of the Simms/Mann UCLA Center for Integrative Oncology, said it's best to eat whole foods and incorporate some type of physical activity on a routine basis. "It's also about giving yourself permission to indulge, in moderation, foods that bring you joy," Ogaryan said.
Many older adults may not realize the great importance of having access to social support, giving the mind some rest by unplugging from social media, and becoming intentional about focusing on present-moment interactions.
"With the spirit and heart, it is finding and connecting to people, activities, hobbies, interests that nourish the soul. Anything that brings connection can foster meaning. It can be spending time with loved ones; connection through music, literature and art; prayer, meditation and connecting to spirituality; or community-based activities," said Ogaryan.
The UCLA mental health experts recommend that everyone take time for rest. This requires unplugging from time to time and just being rather than constantly doing. They advocate practicing gratitude. Even brief moments of recalling things you are grateful for can shift your day from resentment and overwhelm to a sense of peace and appreciation. Further, they advocate savoring the joyful moments. There are many moments in the day when we experience joy or pleasure. So, it is important not to skip over them.
Recharging your batteries
Tuning into how you moderate your energy permits you to make better choices about how you move through your day. Take pauses and slow down. Life tends to feel loud and fast. Give yourself permission to dial down the volume and speed.
"Check in with your internal energy just like you approach your phone battery: How charged are you? Do you start the day at 100%? What depletes you and what energizes you? Lean into the energizing practices and minimize the depleting ones," said Dr. Elizabeth Ko, who is the medical director of the UCLA Health Integrative Medicine Collaborative.
Taking a moment to really savor an experience, even for a few seconds, can help build up our joy resources.
"Seek optimism every day. You may not find something to rejoice about, but you may find something meaningful that may help others and yourself," said Dr. David Reuben, who is a geriatrician at UCLA Health in California.
Phillip Watkins is Professor of Psychology at Eastern Washington University and conducts research on gratitude and joy. He said nine different studies examined the similarities and differences between joy and other positive emotions and found that joy was distinct from other positive emotions, including gratitude, contentment and concentration/interest.
Joy occurs when we interpret a situation as indicating a connection or return to something good. For example, reunions between older adults who care for each other but who have been apart for some time are most likely to induce joy, according to the researchers.
A few studies have examined the connection between joy and subjective well-being. Researchers have developed measures of joy as both a temporary state (feeling joyful in the moment) and as a more enduring personality trait (a tendency to experience joy more or less often than other people). These measures are moderate to strong predictors of well-being. Studies show a direct link between joy and gratitude and spirituality.
In a recent study, the Washington researchers looked at joy over a period of time and found that
gratitude predicted increased future joy. Somewhat surprisingly, joy also predicted increases in gratitude over time, suggesting an intriguing upward spiral between gratitude and joy. Researchers have found that gratitude increases joy and joy also increases gratitude. It is theorized that this "cycle of goodness" might be important to overall happiness.
'Micro-acts' for others, and yourself
It is recommended you perform micro-acts that can reduce stress and cultivate happiness, often involving focusing on the beauty and joy in life. People who performed just one micro-act daily for a week reported about a 25% increase in emotional well-being and feelings of connectedness to others, according to early results from a large, crowd-sourcing study out of California. As part of the study, more than 20,000 people from 30 countries tried a micro-act for five minutes each day for one week.
Micro-acts are not complicated or burdensome. It is recommended that older adults give themselves simple little gifts, such as a foot massage. It's an easy thing anyone can do.
"Our feet take a pounding every day, but most of us don't take care of our feet. There is a whole body of knowledge about reflexology, which is really acupressure points, and you stimulate a lot of these points when you massage your feet," said Dr. Lawrence Taw, director of the UCLA Center for East-West Medicine, Torrance.
He recommends getting a simple golf ball or a roller, and just roll each foot over it. It can be relaxing, especially if you combine it with closing your eyes and deep breathing.
"I usually tell patients to massage their feet daily, but the best time to do it is at night before you go to bed," said Dr. Taw.
John Schieszer is an award-winning national journalist and radio and podcast broadcaster of The Medical Minute. He can be reached at medicalminutes@gmail.com.
John Schieszer is an award-winning national journalist and radio and podcast broadcaster of The Medical Minute.
