The Power of a Smile
As devoted and busy college students and human beings, it becomes pretty hard to juggle what feels like a thousand things at once and still find time to put your needs first. We’re here to share one of the easiest and best kept secrets that can—literally—turn any frown upside down.
Smiling is proven to provide countless benefits for one’s mental health and long-term happiness. The act of smiling actually sparks a chemical reaction in your brain in which neuropeptides (dopamine, serotonin, and endorphins) are released, reducing stress and increasing happiness. These little happiness soldiers not only increase happiness, but also work as natural pain relievers and can reduce blood pressure. So basically, what we’re saying is that when you smile, you are simultaneously bettering your health free of charge!
Not only does smiling affect your own personal health, but it can spread to those around you—it is proven that smiling is actually contagious! The part of your brain that controls your smile is located in the cingulate cortex, an automatic unconscious response area. This means when someone else sees your smile, their brain’s response is to mimic that facial expression which, in turn, increases their own happiness. Your own smile has the power to not only make your day better, but also the day of the guy or girl who passes you on the sidewalk and sees your bright smile!
The best advice we can give you is that even on your worst days and in those dark stressful hours, fake the biggest smile you can to release those little happiness soldiers in your brain and better your mood. Smiling can turn your bad mood or bad day completely around and have a hand in making someone else’s day!
Sources:
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/cutting-edge-leadership/201206/there-s-magic-in-your-smile
https://www.neuronation.com/science/benefits-of-smiling