How Practicing Optimism Can Impact Your Mental Health

The American Psychological Association defines “optimism” as “hopefulness: the attitude that good things will happen and that people’s wishes or aims will ultimately be fulfilled.” An optimistic person tends to “anticipate positive outcomes, whether serendipitously or through perseverance and effort,” and generally feels confident that they will achieve their desired goals.

Maintaining a positive, bright outlook on life is associated with improved mental and physical health., but if you are not a naturally optimistic person, that does not mean you can’t learn how to be more optimistic and possibly reap the associated health benefits. Transitioning your outlook on life will likely take consistent practice. There are several ways to train your brain to view the world and the future through a more hopeful lens, which can result in many positive favorable outcomes. 

Physical and mental health benefits of practicing optimism

Cultivating a tendency to veer to positive instead of negative thinking has yielded numerous health benefits.

Mental health benefits of practicing optimism

According to research, one of optimism's primary mental health benefits is an enhanced ability to regulate positive and negative emotions, resulting more often in personal happiness and less often in mood disorders like depression and anxiety. Optimistic people are generally happier and at a lower risk of developing mental health conditions like depression and anxiety.

Optimistic people are also more adaptable to change, and their cognitive flexibility can lead to increased creativity, improved problem-solving skills, and a more productive approach to life’s hardships.

With these higher levels of resilience and mental agility, people with an optimistic outlook may experience the negative impact of undesirable circumstances less intensely than their pessimistic counterparts. Optimism might even play a critical role in processing serious adverse life events that result in trauma, potentially serving as a protective barrier against developing post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Employing optimism while facing adverse life events might  use perseverance, self-respect, and self-esteem as a means to a fortunate end. After conquering those challenges, these attributes may be reinforced, and the cycle repeats as needed.

Optimism also plays a critical role in processing tragedy, trauma, and other adverse life events, serving as a protective factor against the development of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Please note that practicing optimism is not an adequate substitute for professional assistance from a mental health specialist. With higher levels of resilience, people with an optimistic outlook may experience the negative impact of undesirable circumstances less intensely than their pessimistic counterparts.

Optimistic people are typically more adaptable to change. Their ability to be cognitively flexible can lead to increased creativity, improved problem-solving, and a more productive approach to facing life’s hardships. Such mental health outcomes may feed a cycle that involves using perseverance, self-respect, and self-esteem as a means to take on challenges; when successful in meeting those challenges, those attributes may be reinforced.

Physical health benefits of practicing optimism

In addition to the positive mental health outcomes from practicing optimism, there are many physical health benefits associated with an optimistic mindset. Perhaps most notably, optimistic people tend to experience a longer lifespan and a lower mortality risk than those who are more pessimistic. 

This phenomenon could be likely largely due in large part to an improved recovery prognosis for many health conditions. For example, an optimistic individual who is diagnosed with a life-threatening disease might be more willing to try new treatment approaches and adhere to a doctor’s advice, possibly because their focus is on healing from the disease rather than the threats of it. Concentrating on achieving a desirable outcome because they are more likely to anticipate desirable outcomes, the individual may be spurred to pay closer attention to their diet, exercise more regularly, etc.

Other studies reveal that people with a more optimistic outlook have stronger immune systems, improved cardiovascular health and functioning, and a decreased likelihood of dying from a stroke, cancer, or heart disease. 

Outside of physical and mental health outcomes, optimistic people tend to make more money than pessimistic people because. O optimists may be more likely to incorporate fiscal planning measures into their lives to ensure continuing financial solvency. Having a positive outlook is also associated with experiencing greater levels of satisfaction in one’s platonic, familial, and romantic relationships. 

Learning how to be more optimistic

Some research indicates that optimism may be 25% to -30% heritable. Studies have demonstrated that optimistic tendencies can be displayed at an early age. Optimism can also be shaped by childhood experiences, with children often taking cues from their parents regarding attitudes toward hopefulness. 

If you do not feel as though you are predisposed to optimism or you grew up with parents who were not optimistic parents, that does not mean optimism is entirely out of your reach. There are some ways you can work to cultivate this mindset in your life. 

Practice gratitude through journaling

Writing in a journal can be one of the most effective methods of practicing mindfulness, which involves observing your inner thoughts and feelings without judgment. Mindfulness can prevent rumination or excessive focus on negative experiences or personal shortcomings, which can deter your ability to be optimistic. 

Any form of journaling can benefit your mental health, but if you are interested in enhancing your tendencies toward optimism, research shows that gratitude journaling, in particular, can yield significant results. 

Gratitude is a state of thankfulness and appreciation, and it can be associated with whatever in your life you find to be meaningful, whether it is something small (your daily cup of coffee in the morning) or something huge (your relationship with your partner). Taking time to write down one or two things you are grateful for daily once a day to write down one or two things you are grateful for can help you to start to pay more attention and give more weight to the positive moments in your life, that could provoke gratitude. These moments can sometimes be lost in the hustle and bustle of day-to-day activities and stressors, so practicing gratitude often requires intention.

Gratitude journaling is not the only way to use a journaling practice to cultivate optimism. It may also be beneficial to journal about your personal or professional accomplishments or even small moments where you were offered kindness to someone else. Noting moments of pride and success in your life —  (whatever those concepts may mean to you —) can enhance your self-esteem, which can lead to higher levels of confidence, which is  linked to and increased optimism.

Visualize a happy future for yourself

Another way to increase optimism in your life is to visualize the best possible future for yourself. This practice may seem counterintuitive—wouldn’t imagining your dream life lead to disappointment when that dream is inevitably not fully realized? Isn’t it more beneficial to employ realistic thinking that includes some adverse events more beneficial? 

On the contrary, research indicates that envisioning a fortunate future leads to increased levels of optimism and happiness, which, while not guaranteeing any specific future events, would at least seem to increase the likelihood of a more positive future experience. in some way.

Try sitting down and writing about your dream future for a few minutes each week. It can be helpful to hone in on specific aspects of your life that you would like to improve: your career, your health, your romantic relationships, your living situation, your hobbies, your relationship with your family — anything, etc. After a month of incorporating this practice, you may see positive favorable results.

Imagining a future where good things happen helps to move your thought patterns away from focusing on what could go wrong. Each time you skew your thoughts to the positive, you move one step closer to making optimism your default mindset to building a default mindset of visualizing how things could go well. This method of developing a more optimistic, hopeful mentality –— which might take less than an hour total each month — may help you find some new ideas about ways to make your life lead a more fulfilling life.

How online therapy can help you cultivate optimism

Cognitive behavioral therapy, sometimes called CBT, is one effective way to change negative thought patterns. A trained and licensed CBT counselor can help you to identify ways you are assuming the worst or adopting a pessimistic outlook and start replacing those patterns with more empowered alternatives. One accessible way to attend CBT counseling is through online therapy, which can be carried out at conducive times and from the safety and comfort of your own home. 

The benefits of online therapy for building an optimistic outlook

Online therapy’s capabilities have enabled many people to get mental health care when their geographic location or specific mental health challenges limits their opportunities. With BetterHelp, you can set virtual meetings with your dedicated therapist through video chat, phone calls, or in-app messaging. If you have a quick question or update, you can also send text messages. BetterHelp’s 30,000+ licensed counselors are adept at supporting people through a wide variety of challenges, and you don’t have to have a mental illness to reap the benefits of therapy.

Research indicates that attending therapy online may be as effective as attending traditional in-person therapy sessions. One study found that online delivery of CBT had comparable outcomes to attending CBT sessions in person. If you are hoping to find a way to build a more optimistic outlook, online therapy may be a beneficial resource for you.