16 Apr Have Fun… For Health’s Sake!
April 16, 2012
If you’re not having enough fun in your life, for the sake of your physical, emotional, and spiritual health… start today! Choose one thing from the list below and do it.
Can you believe that some of us have to be bribed by our health in order to take the time to have fun? Why is it that people have to be convinced to proactively schedule time to do things that actually feel good! Because, for different reasons, many of us have trouble making the time to relax and enjoy. However, when we don’t, it catches up with us: either in our relationships, our job performance, our own depression or anxiety, or in our physical health.
Fun in our lives causes our brains to produce endorphins, dopamine, and other “happiness chemicals” which cause every area of our lives to improve. Now, print a complete list of my 85 fun things to do: take the list below, and add to it my first 60 “Secret Fun List” items on this blog posted on 2/28/2012 and 3/8/2012. You can find them under the “Necessary Life Skills” category.
Post this list on your refrigerator and choose 3 per week, then DO them! Don’t choose an item unless it’s authentically pleasurable for you. I mean, some people truly derive great pleasure from housecleaning or organizing! But if you don’t, there are lots more to choose from.
So if you’re not releasing enough endorphins, dopamine, and serotonin in your brain to keep it happy and healthy, deprive yourself no longer! Start today by adding one item off the following list to your schedule today. Let me know in the comments section below which one you choose! (I think I’ll do item #80.)
61. Collect shells.
62. Go to a spectator sport.
63. Take pictures with your camera or phone.
64. Go fishing.
65. Do some housecleaning or organizing.
66. Read the Bible.
67. Go on a picnic.
68. Play a game.
69. Have lunch with a friend.
70. Think about happy moments in your childhood.
71. Play cards.
72. Look at photos.
73. Do crossword puzzles.
74. Go to a museum.
75. Light candles.
76. Listen to the radio.
77. Tell someone you love them and why.
78. Go horseback riding.
79. Work on a jigsaw puzzle.
80. Give someone a compliment.
81. Practice a relaxation technique.
82. Do a small part of a work project: put photos in an album, clean closet, organize drawers.
83. Learn something new: study an interesting topic on the Internet, in a magazine, or in a book.
84. Go to the gym or an exercise class.
85. Talk to God as you would to a very close friend.