10 Things that will do you good

Many doctors only ever tell you about things that you should not do. But that’s boring ... and not much fun. Here are ten things you can do that will revolutionize your life:

1. Say “I love you” at least once a day to the person you love most in the world. And make sure that they say “I love you” to you. Those three words make us feel wanted.

We live in a world that is too often cruel and thoughtless and full of anger and hatred. Knowing that someone loves you will help protect you against the toxic stress in your life.

2. Two or three times a week, exercise until you feel hot and sweaty.

Exercise should never hurt and should always be fun, but if you don’t need a bath or shower after exercising, then you haven’t exercised properly.

If you are in any doubt about whether you are fit enough to exercise, you should check with your doctor.

3. Spend half a day a week being selfish.

Most of us try to cram too much sensible, useful living into our lives. So spend half a day a week doing something that you can enjoy. Go swimming, dancing, walking or simply sit in the park. Have half a day a week that is yours.

4. Drink more water. To keep your body in good shape you should drink at least 600ml of water every day. Your kidneys need a good supply of water in order to function properly.

5. Eat a banana a day. Bananas are better for you than apples. They are cheap and full of fibre and vitamins. Besides they contain very few kilojoules, so they won’t make you fat.

6. At least once a week do something that is ‘bad’ for you.

You should take care of yourself, but if you take your health too seriously you could worry too much and may become a hypochondriac.

A little of something you fancy will do you good; problems start when you have a lot of everything you fancy.

7. Stop wasting your life. Throw away any junk mail unopened. Put the phone down and shut the door on unwanted salespeople. In just one week you may save enough time to do something you really enjoy. Unwanted salespeople – often offering things you don’t want or need – can waste hours of your life and build up your stress.

8. Buy a telephone with an on-off button. Or buy yourself a telephone-answering machine – and use it to take incoming calls when you want to rest.

How many times have you sat down to relax and been disturbed by the phone? How many times your parties been interrupted by badly timed and not important calls? Often, we allow the phone to rule our lives… we let it get away with rude behaviour that we would never tolerate from the children.

9. Keep a diary. You don’t have to fill the pages with your innermost thoughts or daily happenings. But keeping a diary will help you plan your life more effectively – and therefore avoid many unnecessary and unexpected stresses. A diary will also give you a chance to let off steam in private.

10. Do something intensely physical whenever you feel angry. Beat a rug, dig the garden, break an old plate. Or go to the country and shout. Getting anger out of your system will help protect you from stress.

V.Coleman

The New Idea 10/05/ 2007