The Positive Emotional Virus - a virus you want to spread

The act of being calm and positive actually changes our body chemistry and improves our mental and physical health! So, simply by making a decision to change the way you think and respond to things can have a profound effect.

The wonderful thing is that our immensely clever and complex brains can be fooled into positivity even when we're feeling low and anxious. This is because our brains can't tell the difference between imagination and reality. If you think about a happy memory, something that made you laugh or something you're looking forward to, it makes your brain think that this "good thing" is happening right now. In response your brain kicks off a happy chain of events, giving you a boost of positive neurotransmitters and making you feel better. It's like any skill - the more you practise be mindful of your attitude and thoughts, the easier it gets and you just keep on getting the benefits.

But it's not limited to you...

As you feel better, the way you interact with others changes too - it becomes more positive - and there's a knock-on effect to the people you interact with. Something as simple as a smile is contagious and actually spreads good emotions because mirror neurons in our brains make us respond in kind. Someone smiles at you, you smile back. Someone acts in a calm and positive way towards you and you are encouraged to do the same. The added bonus is, your brain thinks "I'm happy, relaxed and positive" and gives you a boost too. You feel better and so are better able to cope with whatever comes your way. It's so easy to pass on! Isn't that a great thing to spread?

This is important to us all but it is particularly important when interacting with our children during times of uncertainty or challenging circumstances. Just as you can spread positivity leading to wellbeing, so you can do the same with negativity so our attitude really matters because that is what we project, no matter how you might try to mask it. Children are much more astute than we sometimes give them credit for. They take their cues from us, picking up on emotional undercurrents and 'vibes'. In short, they will react how you do. Find your positivity and they will too.

So, why not spread a little happiness? It's a virus we could all do with catching.

My positives for the day (so far) include:

• Listening to a David Walliams audiobook with my son and having a good giggle.
• Remembering to put the oven on for lunch!
• Reading a bit of a book on Marketing (which I admit to putting off from yesterday but I'm actually glad I did).
• Getting some work stuff out of the way before we started home-school for the day
• Laughing at a Harry Potter joke on twitter. Ah, Simple things! 

Keep smiling!