There are two things in common when feeling stressed, anxious, worried, pessimistic, hopeless, helpless, sad, depressed, annoyed, angry:
Not smiling and not seeing as clearly.
There are two things in common when feeling at ease, peaceful, calm, hopeful, optimistic, helpful, happy, joyful, enthusiastic, ecstatic:
Smiling and seeing more clearly.
Smiling comes naturally when we’re feeling good. But, it works the other way too. When you choose to smile, even if you don’t want to, it makes you feel good. Smiling gives you a sense of peace, safety, well-being and joy, which is your natural state. Smiling is relaxing, for your mind, body, and your eyes.
You can see this naturally relaxed, contented and smiling state quite often on the faces of children. It’s less common on adults. Maybe because children don’t have to deal with as much stress? And, when they do experience stress, and react with tense emotions like sadness, fear or anger, they snap out of it quickly. Unlike adults, they seem to get right back into that natural state of contentment and happiness. They are quickly smiling again.
Adults just don’t smile as much. Sure, there are a few openly and consistently smiling adults. And they’re the ones I am drawn to and want to imitate. But, for most adults, smiling regularly can feel awkward. It’s not widely done, accepted, nor appreciated, when we become adults.
I remember times smiling as a child, when my mother would ask, “Are you okay?” And, I’m sure you’ve heard the saying, “Smile, people will wonder what you’re up to.”
“Raise the corners of your mouth and smile! A positive attitude is the basis for any improvement in our lives.“
– Claudia Muehlenweg
Relearning to smile
As children, we probably smiled more often and more easily. As adults, smiling is something that may need to be practiced and relearned. But, the more we practice smiling, the more comfortable, natural and easy to do it can become. I heard long ago, in an anatomy class, that smiling uses less facial muscles than frowning. It does seem to take less effort and feels more relaxing to me.
There are many ways to practice relearning to smile, here are some possibilities…
Simply raise the corners of your mouth
- Just that slight upward movement, gently forming the corners of your mouth into a smile may be enough to elicit a feeling of greater relaxation, contentment or happiness. It doesn’t have to be much to be effective. Just a slight raising of each corner will do.
- As you raise the corners of your mouth, it may help to also raise your eyebrows a little too, to get the weight of your eyelids off your eyeballs. You may feel a sense of openness and lightness in your eyes.
- And, blink a little, gently and effortlessly.
- Allow your face to soften. Shift your attention, eyes and head a little to the left and right. Allow your neck and shoulders to be loose and relaxed as you continuing allowing the corners of your mouth to gently raise..
Smile at yourself in the mirror
- As you practice raising the corners of your mouth, it will get easier and feel more natural. And, you’ll inevitably get to the point of spontaneously smiling.
- This is my favorite because it’s so simple and sets a positive tone for the rest of my day. I do it every morning in front of the bathroom mirror, usually adding laughter as well. I do think I look funniest first thing in the morning, which helps.
Think of something pleasant
- Close your eyes for a minute or so and bring to mind a loving thought, of a significant person, pet, special place, favorite thing or fond memory. Think of someone or something that makes you feel good. Allow this thought to bring a smile to your face. Then, gently blink your eyes open. You can do this anytime, and is especially a good thing to do while palming.
- Dr. Bates found that thinking about something familiar and pleasant improves vision. He called this familiar and pleasant memory a “foundation test.”
- Bates method teacher Esther Joy van der Werf, who uses the term ‘foundation memory,’ says, “When your mind is relaxed, mental pictures will appear easily, instantly, and with perfect clarity, whenever you choose to think of something familiar. It’s really useful to have a favorite memory – one that you can recall so easily that it will help you relax the moment you think of it.”
- My own “foundation memory” is petting my cat Bella while she sits on my lap. This memory brings an instant smile to my face, relaxes me, and fine tunes my vision.
- Choose your own “foundation memory,” one that is familiar, easy to recall, pleasant, relaxing, makes you feel happier and smile.
Practice having gratitude
- What are you grateful for? We often get caught up in our life and forget to appreciate the gift that it is.
- There are a variety of ways of practicing gratitude, of having appreciation for the people, things and events in our lives.
- You could could express gratitude to others by simply saying “thank you.”
- You could keep a gratitude journal, writing down something at the end of each day that you are grateful for.
- You could sit in meditation, contemplation, prayer, with an intention of having gratitude.
- If you can’t think of anything to be grateful for, you could simply appreciate that your next breath happens, “Thank you.” And your next, “Thank you.” And your next…
Do something you enjoy
- What do you like to do that makes you smile? Watch a comedy show? Play with your grand kids? Dance? Visit a friend? Get out in nature? Do more of that.
- As soon as I’m dome writing this blog, I’m going to go for a walk with my wife in the park. Just thinking about being outside, walking with my wife, in nature makes me smile.
Take a laughter yoga class
- Ever since I started taking laughter yoga classes, which combines voluntary laughing with breathing, with fellow vision educator Charlotte Schuman a few months ago, I’m smiling more. A lot more!
- Practicing laughing has increased my ability to smile (and laugh!). I’m smiling more spontaneously.
- I’m happier, more present and more relaxed.
- My vision is good. But, it does fluctuate with how well I am handling life stresses, naturally. And, since taking laughter yoga, I’m handling life stresses better. And, my vision is better!
- I predict that taking a laughter yoga class can make you smile as well!
Be creative
Can you come up with your own ways of practicing smiling? Be creative about it, have fun and enjoy the process. Make it a habit of smiling more often than not. Know that it’s not easy to strain, mentally or physically while you are smiling. And, not straining is good for the eyes.
More Information and resources
- Laughter Yoga with Charlotte Schuman
- “Optimal Eyesight: How to Restore and Retain Great Vision” by Esther Joy van der Werf
I am a natural vision improvement teacher and coach, massage therapist, yoga teacher and the owner of Relearn To See – Natural Vision Improvement. I take a wellness coaching approach to helping you negotiate life in a more relaxed and natural way that can benefit your eyesight, health and well-being.