Most people have probably heard of being ‘present in the moment’. It’s when you focus on the here and now without allowing thoughts of the past or future to creep in. It’s what you experience when you are completely at peace with this very moment.
Reading this article last year got me thinking. How often have I eaten a meal and not tasted it because of a plethora of things on my mind. Maybe something important that occurred yesterday? Or maybe something I’m planning for tomorrow? Honestly? It happens most of the time.
But what was interesting in this article is that it provided proof that dwelling too much on the negatives of the past, is bad for your health. And anything that’s bad for your health is likely to have people keeling over and dying earlier than they otherwise should… and that is not good for life insurance.
Research suggests that people who look back at their past experiences full of regrets about missed opportunities or with bitterness about how they have been treated are more likely to fall ill and generally have a poorer quality of life. Those who look back in anger are also more sensitive to pain, it found.
The happiest and healthiest people, according to the researchers, are those who manage to enjoy the here and now, while making time to learn from the past and plan for the future.
In the study, 50 men and women were asked about their feelings about the past and future, as well as their physical and mental health and quality of life. The questions included how often they think about things they should have done differently, whether they worry about not getting things done on time and whether they live life a day at a time.
The study concluded that
- People who dwell on negatives from their past tend to be in worse health.
- People who complain about their health are up to three times more likely to die in the next 30 years than those who regard themselves as healthy.
So, a person's outlook can influence their lifespan.
Maybe insurance companies should be asking some very different questions on their life insurance application forms??
