Discovery Village at Sarasota Bay retirement communities in Florida are wonderful places to discover that people are a big part of what is best about life. You can’t put a price tag on the joys only friends and loved ones can provide, simply because they are in your life and care about you. Acquaintances and passersby can also give your life a boost. When it all comes down to it, when preparing to bid their final farewell, what people have uppermost on their hearts and minds is, almost invariably, other people. Here are some of life’s best things that involve others.

The Power of a Smile

Mother Teresa famously said, “Every time you smile at someone, it is an action of love, a gift to that person, a beautiful thing.” If you’ve ever flashed someone a genuine smile and didn’t have it returned, you know that there is something powerful in a smile and sometimes in the lack of one. Of course, smiles are completely free of charge, but they can have an impact on your entire day. There is a running consensus that smiling even has the power to change the world, one smile at a time. Because smiles are contagious, they are passed from one person and place to the next.

Keep in mind that people who smile have fewer wrinkles than people who frown a lot, and it’s because you use fewer muscles to smile than you do when frowning. The following are a few more reasons that you benefit from smiling:

An extensive university research project revealed that baseball players from the past who had beaming smiles in their baseball card pictures lived longer, on average than those who didn’t smile – 79.9 and 72.9 years, respectively.
Research shows that people are more attractive when they smile. By simply smiling, you are presenting the world with a more appealing version of yourself.
It’s a scientific fact that smiling makes us feel better. It is because serotonin is released when we smile. Serotonin is a neurotransmitter that creates feelings of well-being and happiness. Smiling can make you feel happy on the gloomiest of days.
Children smile as many as 400 times daily, while more than 30% of adults smile more than 20 times a day. That statistic alone shows that adults simply need to smile more.
When taking advantage of the many wonderful activities at Discovery Village at Sarasota Bay retirement communities in Florida, you will make quicker work of making friends if you smile. There is something about smiling that makes us more approachable and that encourages others to reach out to us. Remember that first impressions are always important, and a smile is the best way to create your best first impression.
Our behavior is influenced by our feelings and thoughts. According to research, a great way to give yourself a smile is by closing your eyes and thinking back to a happy memory that brings joy to your heart. Yesterday’s happy times can bring a lasting smile into your present.
Don’t get hung up on thinking you have nothing to smile about if life is currently a struggle. When it comes to smiling, faking it till you make it is a great philosophy. Hold your head up and smile, even when it doesn’t seem possible, and you will discover afresh the power of a smile.

Hugs

The scientific community has apparently been busy exploring what the best things in life are because research confirms that hugs, which are completely free, have numerous benefits. Check out the following great reasons to hug someone at least once every day:

The levels of cortisol in the body are lowered with a good hug, which means your anxiety is lessened.
When you hug someone, oxytocin is released in the body. This is a powerful hormone that can strengthen bonds with our friends and loved ones and create feelings of solidarity with strangers.
Hugging helps lower blood pressure.
Human relationships are nurtured with a good hug.
Hugs simply feel great. The power of touch is profoundly beneficial. There are nerves in our body that absolutely ache for the stimulation supplied by a hug. A good hugger can be counted on to lift your spirits and make you feel wonderful.
A good hug can promote patience. You relax, breathe more deeply, and use better posture, all because of a hug.

If you are a resident of our Discovery Village at Sarasota Bay retirement community in Florida, you need to look no further than the community itself to find the joys of interacting with others. In this continuing series, learn more of the free things in life that are difficult to top and that you can also enjoy as a resident at Discovery Village at Sarasota Bay. Contact Discovery Village at Sarasota Bay at 941.209.3466 today.