Smile! with Musicals Tonight. Loved this cast so much - more pics below…
Hi Friends! I remember I used to love watching this television show, “Ally McBeal”. I know this dates me severely, but who cares! On the show, one of the characters who was particularly neurotic (played incredibly by Peter MacNicol), practiced something called “Smile Therapy”, where he would literally force a smile when he felt panic to change his mood. As you may guess, this made for some pretty hilarious moments on the show. He even had an actual “smile therapist” as I recall.
It sounds pretty insane, but getting yourself to smile, even when you feel pretty horrendous - just the physical shift of it in your body, makes you feel better! I found this quote online from someone (who is clearly awesome) named Erin Kelley:
“Putting your smile muscles to work during times of stress changes your outlook for a couple of reasons. First, the brain interprets this muscle movement to mean that you’re happy or contented. Even holding a pencil horizontally between your teeth is enough to approximate a smile, as far as your brain is concerned.
Second, your mood and perceptions of neutral events grow more positive simply from “acting” happy. Happy behavior isn’t likely to erase the trauma of a crisis, but it will encourage you to view mundane events from a more generous perspective. Besides these advantages, the sheer absurdity of smiling in moments of duress breaks the problem-centered mindset of anxiety and anger.”
Cool!
Here’s another fascinating article about it:
https://www.mindingtherapy.com/do-yourself-happy/
I like the idea of being able to “Do Yourself Happy” at a time like this. Social Distancing really takes a toll - doesn’t it? It’s a little bit like a rollercoaster ride of emotions, but when you are down…you are DOWN. Also, incredibly frustrating to not be able to do that much about it, being confined to your apartment or home. If you feel like you are falling back into that slump of hopelessness - turn on some happy music and force a happy dance - or just smile like a freak alone in your apartment. Why not - worth a try!
Sometimes, I just look at my boyfriend out of the blue with a ridiculous large “Chesire Cat” grin. He usually rolls his eyes and says “WHAT are you doing?!?!” - but even his response makes me laugh. Hahahahahaha.
Anyway, keep smiling! xo Holly
