Andrea Warshaw Wernick is a women’s health care, weight loss and stress management consultant and, most importantly, a mother and grandmother.

“I always say that happy people are healthy people. Our minds and our bodies intimately are connected. Everyone has their share of bad days, but if you find yourself feeling more down than up—it is possible to change your outlook.”

Here are 10 ways to move up the emotional scale and begin turning negativity into optimism.

1. Learn to forgive. Have you ever heard the saying that holding onto anger is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die? Well, accepting that people make mistakes, forgiving them and letting it go is like a green juice for the soul. It will instantly make you feel better. Plus, when you practice forgiving others, it has a boomerang effect. The next time you screw up, you’ll be less hard on yourself.
2. Visualize daily. Often the things you focus on most appear in your life. So spend a little time each day visualizing what you really want. Don’t let other thoughts interfere with your concentration. You might want to buy the book Creative Visualizations by Shakti Gawain. It really helped me get a husband!
3. Focus on the present. This is a difficult task but if you accomplish it you will have a better life. When you find yourself obsessing about something that happened or feeling anxious about something that might happen, stop and remind yourself that you can’t change the past or control the future. What you can do is learn from the past to do better in the present so that you can succeed in the future.
4. Keep a journal. Before you go to bed, it’s helpful to write down all your daily thoughts as well as a to-do list for the next day. Knowing that your to-do list is ready for you in the morning and that you don’t have to remember anything will help you fall asleep peacefully. Writing down your thoughts can help you to let go and identify patterns in your thinking that might need a tweak. This is an excellent mind exercise.
5. Think only positive thoughts and smile every day. Smiling and focusing on the positive things in your life help to release happy hormones in your brain. So make a conscious effort to smile as much possible and think better thoughts by squashing the negative ones when they pop up and replacing them with something more uplifting.
6. Look people in the eye. When talking with anyone, it’s important to look that person directly in his or her eyes. Looking away or down telegraphs inferiority. Even if you don’t feel confident, try holding another person’s gaze until it starts to feel natural. Confidence will follow.
7. Stay sharp. We all do the same things each day and it can begin to feel like you’re living on cruise control. Shake things up by learning something new. This can shock your brain into a higher gear. It could be anything—learning a new language, making a model plane or even becoming a blogger! LOL.
8. Don’t take life too seriously. We all work very hard to be the best we can but it’s important to have fun while you’re at it. Try to laugh more, lighten up and learn from your mistakes rather than beating yourself up.
9. Get and stay fit. A fit body leads to better health and increased confidence—two important aspects of a long, happy life.
10. Help others in need. Once you start reaching out to those less fortunate, fulfillment is not far behind. Plus, it’s contagious. So pay it forward and learn to love your fellow man.

Find out more at: http://fabatanyage.com/fabulousforever/