2 . The Healing Power of Humor

As a heart doctor, I have to deliver a lot of bad news.     1     Not only can it help lift patients’ spirits up, but it actually helps them recover faster. There is tons of scientific evidence that patients who are depressed after heart operations have a higher death rate, and optimistic patients have significantly fewer wound infections. Laughter can cultivate that optimism, and it truly is the best medicine in many ways:

It relaxes patients.

Medical operations usually make patients feel nervous. Some may sweat, have chest pain and feel unusually strong or irregular heartbeats.     2     When people use humor, the nervous system just tones down a bit, and that allows the heart to relax.

It calms fear.

People are scared of their bodies. Humor can crack through the ice and take the fear away. For example, I have to tell patients about the risk of cognitive impairment (认知损伤) after operations.     3     So I tell them in a humorous way that it’s usually just like forgetting second grade. People understand what that means, and it doesn’t seem quite as frightening.

    4    

After open-heart operation, a patient might say, “Doctor, my chest really hurts.” And I’ll smile and say, “Oh, does it feel like someone opened you up, cut the bone and operated in there?” That fells them the pain is normal and they are going to be fine. So they take their minds off their troubles and worry less.

It helps doctors.

    5     When we give the news, we are supposed to help patients in a humane way. A good sense of humor is just like a weapon, and it can beat the difficult situation. As a matter of fact, humor benefits doctors as well. Plus, it is a better way to enjoy life.

3 . Every one of us may have been hurt by others — either by their words or actions. The best way to deal with the problem is to “forgive and forget”.

“It is well established that learning to forgive others can have positive benefits for one’s physical and mental health,” Saima Noreen, a scientist at the University of St. Andrews, UK, told the Huffington Post.

Recently, Noreen and her research team have found one more reason that you should stick to this principle — forgiving somebody who has hurt you makes it easier for you to forget the unhappy memory, according to their new study.

In the study, researchers asked volunteers to read descriptions of 40 different situations that contained bad actions such as stealing, lying and cheating. Imagining being the victims (受害者) , volunteers then had to decide whether they would be able to forgive. Two weeks later, volunteers took part in a memory test. In the test, they were shown a series of words related to the situations they had read about and then were asked to recall certain ones.

The results showed that people were less likely to remember the details of the unpleasant experiences if they had found forgiveness in their hearts. In contrast, if they hadn’t forgiven the mistake, they could always remember what had happened.

However, forgiving someone who has hurt you is always easier said than done. So Noreen hopes that one day in the near future research will give rise to powerful therapeutic (有疗效的) tools that will enable people to “forgive and forget” more effectively.

4 . According to a common saying, “Honesty is the best policy.” But in daily life, honesty can be difficult. Lying often seems like a good way to make people happy or avoid being punished for mistakes. Some people lie out of habit, without even realizing they’re doing it.     1    

One obvious reason for honesty is that lies are difficult to maintain. There’s always a chance that the person you lied to will find out the truth. Is the advantage from lying really worth the risk?     2     If you make up a story, you have to remember all the details. And the more lies you tell, the more stories you have to remember. But if you tell the truth, you will never have trouble remembering. This saves you effort and makes conversations less stressful for you.

    3     People who believe your lies might make bad decisions because of them. And a lie about someone else could destroy that person’s reputation. If your friends find out you lied to them, their feelings will be hurt. They will question whether they can trust you or wonder whether you care about them.     4     This will help you in every area of your life. Business deals, friendships, family and other relationships all depend on trust.

Honesty, however, doesn’t mean that you have to say everything you think.     5     Honesty means that when you speak, you tell the truth without holding any information back. When you do that, you will feel more relaxed and enjoy stronger relationships.

6 . Courage is a quality that everyone has, but it sometimes disappears because of bad experiences or memories.     1     So, how can people build courage? By identifying the source of any lack of courage and actively changing your behavior, you can build courage.

Determine your specific fears. People are often unwilling to admit that they are afraid of something. In order to begin building courage, you need to determine your specific fears.     2     This may help you to work out a plan to overcome them and build your courage.

Recognize your courage. Just as it’s important to identify your fears, you should also recognize that you also have courage in many situations.     3     It can help you to figure out how to apply this quality to situations that cause fear. It can also help improve your behavior and build your courage.

Make a practical plan to build your courage. Once you’ve identified your specific fears and recognized situations where you exhibit courage, make your plan to build your courage and update it when necessary.     4     The reason for that is it helps you be on track if you have difficulties and you will see your progress over time.

Avoid comparing yourself with others. Every person is different and comparing yourself with other people can minimize your self-confidence. Focusing on yourself is essential to building your confidence and courage.

    5     Two characteristics of courageous people are that they not only have confidence, but also they believe in their ability to succeed and overcome fears. By developing and projecting confidence in yourself, you set yourself on the path to building and maintaining courage.