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Category: Health And Happiness

Health And Happiness Go Hand In Hand. Good Health Can Mean Happiness And Some Things That Bring Us Happiness Can Make A Difference To Our Health. I Encourage You To Discover These.

Published on Leave a comment on Outdoor Activities For Kids: Like Some Ideas? Read Some Of These!

By Natalie: A Mum and registered Dietitian with a Passion to help Parents Create a Home Environment where they can Raise Healthy Kids!

Lots Of Ideas For Children's Play Outdoors.
See What You Find!

When the weather is nice, it should be easy to get your kids to go outside to play. Right? But kids can be surprisingly reluctant to skip out the door for playtime. It hasn’t always been like this!

Many kids in the upcoming generation are replacing outdoor play with indoor, sedentary activities like iPad games, texting, or social media. They’re also more involved in knowledge-based downtime like homework and studying than kids from past generations.

How Do Kids Benefit From Outdoor Play?

Studies have shown that kids who spend more time outside might be happier and more relaxed. Time outdoors can even improve short-term memory, concentration and cognitive skills. (It’s almost like nature makes us smarter… amazing!)

It’s Up to Us To Facilitate Outdoor Play

There’s a REAL need for active, outdoor play. Now more than ever. The more outdoor activities you can encourage and facilitate for your kids, the more they’ll reap the physical and emotional benefits of such play.…

Published on Leave a comment on Working Towards A Happy Temperament Is A Better Way To Be Happy More Often

HAPPINESS NEEDS WORKING AT RATHER THAN EXPECTING IT TO JUST COME TO YOU - THAT SELDOM COMES TO MOST, OR WISHING TO BE HAPPY ALL THE TIME, DOES IT? AND THAT'S WHY SO MANY PEOPLE ARE FRUSTRATED WITH IT OR DISDAINED. IF WE CAN REPLACE UNREALISTIC EXPECTATIONS WITH A DIFFERENT OUTLOOK ON HAPPINESS,
A PRACTICAL ONE, THIS CAN WORK FOR MOST OF US.

Collect Happy Thoughts And Moments Instead Of Disappointments

HAPPINESS IS WITHIN OUR REACH WITH THE RIGHT EXPECTATIONS. TRY NOT TO OVERTHINK THINGS - Including Happiness - AND IT WILL BE YOURS MORE OFTEN. HAPPINESS HAS A WAY OF EVADING US WHEN WE CHASE IT AWAY. RECOGNISE THE LITTLE THINGS THAT CAN MAKE US HAPPY MORE OFTEN. YES INDEED, LETS DO THAT.

We Are Happier If We:

You don’t sweat the small stuff...
Just miss the train? Spill your coffee? It doesn’t matter. If focusing on what’s important and not obsessing over minor annoyances is a priority of yours, it may be a sign that you’re in a good place. Research has shown that those who swap focusing on the small, everyday negatives for emphasis on brief, joyful moments tend to be happier overall.…

Published on Leave a comment on The Value And Advantages In Having A Hobby/Hobbies

IT'S NICE TO HAVE A HOBBY: SOMETHING YOU'RE INTERESTED IN, SOMETHING LIGHT-HEARTED. EVERYONE "BUSY BUSY" SEEMS TO BE THE WAY OF MODERN CIVILISATION SINCE THE TURN OF THIS CENTUARY, HEY? BUT IS THAT HEALTHY FOR US OR OUR KIDS? NOT REALLY. NO. SOMEONE SAID TO ME A FEW YEARS AGO "SOME PEOPLE DON'T KNOW WHAT THEY LOVE, TO DO IT?" IT'S SO TRUE THAT SOME DON'T KNOW THEIR PASSION, TO PURSUE IT. THERE ARE BENEFITS WHEN YOU DISCOVER WHAT IT IS, LIKE MANY HAVE EXPERIENCED FOR MONTHS OR YEARS. WE HAVE A FRIEND WHO HAS JUST DISCOVERED HIS AND IT'S REALLY GREAT TO SEE. LIFE SHOULD NOT ALL BE WORK, CHORES AND TV OR SOCIAL MEDIA. TRY AND THINK YOUR WAY AROUND THAT. FEEL FREE TO LOOK FOR IDEAS AND EXPLORE. BE KIND TO YOURSELF, HEY?

6 Reasons To Get A Hobby

By Jaime Kurtz, Ph.D., PsychologyToday.Com

You're Really Not Too Busy.

Over a couple of generations, we have somehow misplaced their free time.

Various things contribute to this, but for many of us, being legitimately busy simply isn't one of them. Instead, we habitually waste time, creating the illusion of busyness.…

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Published on 2 Comments on Children Learn From Growing Things – Let Them Explore, Hey? It’s Good For Them.

I FOUND SOME GOOD FAMILY RELATED MATERIAL ON THE VICTORIAN GOVERNMENT WEBSITE THAT'S REALLY GREAT. I'VE BEEN RESEARCHING NATURE A LOT - OUR NEED FOR REGULAR EXPOSURE TO IT SOME WAY/WAYS THROUGH THE WEEK.

Children Love To Learn How To Grow Plants - Why Not Let Them Try? You May Be Surprised!

IN MY PRETEENS, I WAS FASCINATED BY PEAS AND BEANS EMMERGING THROUGH THE SOIL, WHEN MY MUM WAS TENDING HER VEGGIE GARDEN AND WOULD HAVE LOVED TO HAVE A FEW PLANTS OF MY OWN TO GROW. MY FEELINGS ABOUT THIS WERE NOT VOICED UNTIL I MENTIONED IT TO HER LATER IN LIFE (MY 40'S OR 50'S).

IN RESPONSE, SHE SAID "Oh Janet, you never said anything about it. I would have been happy to share some with you - I didn't think you were interested." I WAS ACTUALLY INTRIGUED. IT'S A GREAT INTEREST FOR KIDS OF DIFFERENT AGES, FROM LITTLE TO TEENS and A GOOD CONTRAST TO THEIR TECH INTERESTS - HELPING TO PROVIDE A BALANCE FOR THEM, HEY? AND HEALTH BENEFITS TO BE GAINED TOO, A WIN WIN!

The Government Says:

People of all ages can enjoy gardening, but children in particular will have lots of fun and gain special benefits. …

Published on Leave a comment on California Communities Learn To Become Self-Sufficient With Mini Gardens

By Virgilio Marin

I LIKE THIS STORY, IT SPEAKS ABOUT MORE THINGS THAN YOU WOULD EXPECT. THE VISIONARY CONCEPTS HERE ARE REALLY INSPIRING.........YOU SHOULD READ ABOUT HOW THEY IMPLIMENTED THINGS. THEY DIDN'T JUST GIVE PEOPLE A BOX OF SMALL SEEDLINGS. AND YOU SHOULD READ ABOUT WHAT THEY DO WITH FRUIT TREES. YES, THE PEOPLE WHO RUN THIS CO-OP ARE GENEROUS KIND VISIONARIES. WOULD LIKE TO SEE THIS KIND OF THING WIDESPREAD - MAYBE IN SOME COMMUNITIES IN AUSTRALIA. WELL DONE!

Cooperation Humboldt, a transition initiative in Humboldt County in California, is providing mini-gardens for free to help communities in the state’s North Coast become self-sufficient and achieve food independence.

The organization initially provided free lawn conversions but decided to shift its focus later on. Tamara McFarland, a leader within the cooperation, was concerned that the lawn conversion project failed to reach individuals who would benefit the most from growing their own food. Most of the people applying for lawn conversions were long-term renters and homeowners with a stable income and the privilege of starting a backyard garden.

When the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic hit, the organization became even more motivated to move away from its lawn-conversion model, which required a number of volunteers working side-by-side for long stretches of time.…

Published on Leave a comment on Something We Can Do For A Healthy Gut And Overall Health – Guess What It Is?

I'VE PLACED AN ARTICLE IN MY BLOG ABOUT THE MICROBIOME WE HAVE IN OUR BODY THAT RELATES VERY CLOSELY TO GUT HEALTH RECENTLY, AND THIS IS SOMETHING ALTOGETHER DIFFERENT YOU WOULD NEVER GUESS. DID YOU KNOW THAT HAVING A HEALTHY GUT HELPS YOUR IMMUNE SYSTEM AND OVERALL HEALTH? YOU ARE ABOUT TO SEE A MISSING PART TO THE HEALTH PUZZLE FOR MANY - EVEN SOME PEOPLE WHO GO TO GYMS AND TAKE SUPPLEMENTS - SOMETHING THAT IS VERY UNDERATED BY MOST PEOPLE AND EASILY MISSED. IT STRENGTHENS YOUR GUT AND IT'S GREAT FOR YOUR HEALTH...... IT'S ALSO FREE...... CAN YOU GUESS NOW?

The One Thing You Should Do For A Healthier Gut

By Dr. Mahmoud Ghannoum – CleanPlates.Com

Stopping to admire a bed of flowers, strolling alongside a river, or sitting on a park bench — chances are, at least one of those scenarios, if not all of them, sounds peaceful and uplifting to you. But time spent in nature benefits more than just your spirits: It can lower stress levels, boost your immune system, improve your heart health, alleviate depression and anxiety, and lead to a healthier gut.…

Published on Leave a comment on Anxious, Depressed, Distracted — What If The Cure Is Just Outside?

Author Florence Williams talks trees, cities, and creativity in her new book "The Nature Fix."

You Spend 5 Percent Of Your Day Outside. Try Making It More. At a time when more than half of all people live in cities, the influence of the natural world is at a low ebb, while our understanding of it keeps growing.

Try Spending Some Time Outdoors - It Lifts Your Mood Level

For two decades, Florence Williams could sit on her porch at night and watch the alpenglow on the Rocky Mountains. Then she moved from remote Colorado to Washington, DC, and started noticing the changes.

“I felt disoriented, overwhelmed, depressed,” she writes in her recent book, The Nature Fix. “My mind had trouble focusing. I couldn’t finish thoughts … and I wasn’t keen to get out of bed.”

Williams was suffering, she says, from nature withdrawal. She spent the next three years digging into the science of how nature works on our brain. In short, it makes us more relaxed, more creative, and more socially connected. She traveled to Japan and Finland, the deserts of Utah and the urban forests of Singapore, to study just how much we stand to gain by bring nature back into our lives.…

Published on Leave a comment on 5 Simple Ways To Spend More Time Outside As A Family – Have A Peep

That lifestyle is what drew us here. We wanted to provide a different type of upbringing for our three young girls: one that focused on adventurous time spent in nature. So for the past two years we’ve been committed to finding fun and imaginative ways to spend as much time as possible out in nature. Over time we’ve grown from a family that considered a trip to a local park an adventure, to one that hikes and camps, fishes and skis.

We’ve grown closer as a family as we’ve grown to embrace our new lifestyle. And our difficult daughter? Well, we still have our moments, but almost never outside.

At first we didn’t know exactly why we wanted to raise outdoor loving kids – it just instinctively seemed like a good idea. If we did have a specific motivation, it was the hope that by starting them early our girls would grow up physically strong and healthy, and with a lifelong love for outdoor activity. Over time we’ve come to learn that the emotional benefits of more time in nature probably outweigh the physical ones.

BENEFITS OF SPENDING MORE TIME IN NATURE AS A FAMILY

It builds confidence.…

Published on Leave a comment on Positive Psychology: Ways We Can Help Ourselves And Others

POSITIVE PSYCHOLOGY WAS INTRODUCED EARLY THIS CENTUARY (2000 and 2005) AND SOME OF IT'S PRINCIPLES CAN BE PRACTICED PERSONALLY - YOU WOULD NOT NEED A PSYCHOLOGIST. IN SOME RESPECTS, THIS KIND OF PRACTICE IS HEALTHIER THAN OTHERS, IF YOU DON'T OVER-DO IT (like most things). IT CERTAINLY HAS IT'S MERITS, YOU WILL SEE IN THIS POST. THESE DAYS, YOU CAN EVEN PRACTICE SOME BEHAVIOUR MODIFICATION TECHNIQUES WITHOUT THE NEED FOR A THERAPIST. SOME PSYCHOLOGISTS WRITE BOOKS AND VIDEOS SHOWING YOU HOW TO APPLY THE TECHNIQUES FOR YOURSELVES. THEY'RE GOOD FOR MAKING AND BREAKING HABITS. SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY IS INTERESTING TOO. FOR NOW, LET'S SEE WHAT POSITIVE PSYCHOLOGY HAS TO OFFER, HEY?

WHAT IS POSITIVE PSYCHOLOGY

Traditionally in psychology, the focus has been on identifying and treating mental health problems such as depression. This is critically important for those facing mental illness however, it provides an incomplete picture of mental health. Positive psychology is a relatively new branch of psychology that shifts the focus from what is clinically wrong, to the promotion of wellbeing and the creation of a satisfying life filled with meaning, pleasure, engagement, positive relationships and accomplishment.

Positive psychology is not about putting on a happy face all the time.…

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Published on 2 Comments on The Importance Of Green Spaces And Their Practical Applications – Researched

GREEN SPACE IS A TERM USED FOR GARDENS, PARKS AND NATURE SETTINGS THAT ARE PLANNED OR INTRODUCED IN CITY AND SUBURBAN AREAS FOR THE BENEFIT OF RESIDENTS, WORKERS AND VISITORS AND ENHANCING DEVELOPMENTS. THEY PROVE TO BE BENEFICIAL FOR HEALTH, MENTALLY AND EMOTIONALLY. THE THERAPUETIC BENEFITS CAN EVEN BE EXPERIENCED PHYSICALLY AS WELL. EVEN THE YOUTH BENEFIT BEHAVORALLY WHEN THERE IS GREEN SPACE IN THEIR AREA. LAND DEVELOPERS ARE NOW CONSIDERING MORE GREEN SPACE IN NEW DEVELOPMENT AREAS. THIS IS SOMETHING THAT SHOULD HAVE BEEN INCLUDED YEARS AGO AND IS NOW BEING CORRECTED. GARDENS AND NATURE IS SOMETHING THAT IS NECESSARY IN OUR LIVES AND WE CAN ALL BENEFIT BY SPENDING SOME TIME OUTDOORS.

Gardening For Health: A Regular Dose Of Gardening

By Richard Thompson – Royal College Of Physicians UK

There is anxiety that the NHS cannot cope now and in the future with the health needs of an increasing and ageing population. It is also realised that pharmaceutical drugs are increasingly expensive and are not always as effective as they appear in the results of early, enthusiastically reported, clinical trials. Drugs are also prescribed at the cost of side effects, which are a leading cause of admissions to hospitals, particularly for the elderly, who are poorly represented in trials.…