So what's so great about being happy?

There have been truckloads of articles and books written about the secret passage to happiness. I think it basically has to do with unconditional self-acceptance - accepting yourself as a good, not perfect, human being no matter what.

I suppose I'd rather be rich and unhappy than poor and unhappy, but I'd really just like to be happy!

Let me warn you up front - self-acceptance is not as easy as it sounds. It doesn't mean that you will always feel good. Painful feelings are an important part of life, so long as they don't result in mental illness.

For example, grieving the loss of a loved one is often a painful experience which may involve sadness, loneliness, anger, and many other normal feelings. Becoming hysterical, depressed, or obsessive is not normal and impedes the process that needs to be complete in order that happiness can return.

There are many reasons to work on increasing happiness. Recent studies have shown that people who are depressed are more likely to have heart attacks and strokes and are four times more likely to die than those who don't. Patients of heart surgery who are experiencing depression are far more likely to have additional health problems.

Granted, not being depressed does not necessarily mean that you are gleeful. However, being happier is a state that we can all achieve more often.

In a recent Harvard Mental Health Letter, attention was given to research suggesting that physical activity "... reduces the risk, or delays the onset of Alzheimer's disease and dementia."

In a study conducted by the University of Illinois, two interesting findings were made: one is that women who took hormone therapy for less than 10 years performed better on executive function tests when compared to women who took hormone therapy 11 years or longer. But women who ranked highest on tests of physical fitness had lost less brain tissue, even when taking hormone treatment for a prolonged period of time.

Physical exercise, therefore, may be one of the keys to functioning better cognitively and, therefore, emotionally as well.

So what does this have to do with happiness? It appears that good health, physical and mental, may have a bearing on longevity and quality of life - being upbeat and happier more of the time.

It is my belief that placing unreasonable demands on yourself and others creates more stress, lower mood, and certainly less frustration tolerance. That doesn't mean you should not make plans and have goals; however, to want or prefer something is quite different than demanding it. The "have tos" and "musts" probably lead to more misery than contentment.

Finally, keep in mind that positive self-acceptance often leads to acceptance of others. As such, those of us who think and feel good about ourselves are less judgmental, more tolerant, and usually positive about life and the world in general.