The Hidden Power of a Smile
Have you overlooked this simple way to be happier?
It’s a challenging morning.
First, I wake up late. Then my pitbull’s ears are bothering him and require medicine, while my son throws an epic tantrum that leaves both my husband and I exhausted and in need of a hug. Then when we finally get out the door, I realize that I’ve left my wallet and have to go back to the house. When I finally arrive at my physical therapy appointment, I realize that I’m 30 minutes early and will have to rush to get my son from school to even make it on time.
It’s just one of those days, when I’m continually reminding myself that this stress and apprehension originates in my brain and that these events pose no real threat to my safety or wellbeing. They’re just part of the internal story that I’m telling myself.
As I check-in for physical therapy and greet my therapists, both practitioners flash me a bright, hopeful smile. “How have you been? How is the neck and back pain? I hope you’re feeling better.” They ask with unbridled enthusiasm and positivity.
As I recount the events from the morning, I realize that the pain is indeed better and I count my blessings for having a car, the ability to drive, freelance work, a healthy son in school, and thriving animal rescues.
Suddenly I feel waves of gratitude crash over me and I brightly smile back. “Pretty good,” I say. “The headaches are improving.”
We all beam in the way that you do when in the presence of another person smiling exuberantly. I realize now that I’ve learned an important lesson: smiling is contagious.
Mother Teresa was right when she said, “Peace begins with a smile.”
Current research demonstrates that a smile is indeed contagious.
And spiritual pioneers and scientists both agree that a smile can transform us and our world.
A smile lifts our mood and the mood of others around us. Smiling can even help us live longer.
So as you read on, start smiling to reap these benefits.
How smiling influences brain chemistry
Every time that we smile, we release neuropeptides that actively mitigate stressors.
These clever neurotransmitters send a message to our entire body when we are, for example, happy, sad, stressed, or excited.
The neurotransmitters, along with serotonin, dopamine, and endorphins, are released when we smile.
This not only changes our mood, but it can also lower blood pressure and relax our body.
These brain chemicals also relieve pain and lift our mood — naturally.
How smiling affects the body
Did you know that people are perceived differently when they smile?
When we flash an authentic expression, we are seen as sincere, reliable, and more attractive.
In fact, psychologists at the University of Cardiff in Wales found that people whose ability to frown is compromised by cosmetic botox injections are happier, on average, than people who can frown.
The researchers administered an anxiety-and-depression questionnaire to 25 females, half of whom had received frown-inhibiting botox injections. The botox recipients reported feeling happier and less anxious in general; more importantly, they did not report feeling any more attractive, which suggests that the emotional effects were not driven by a psychological boost that could come from the treatment’s cosmetic nature.
The associations in our mind between how we feel and how we react to those feelings may be so strong that our expressions simply end up reinforcing our emotions; there may be no evolutionary reason for this connection. Even so, our faces do seem to communicate our state of mind not only to others but also to ourselves. “I smile, so I must be happy,” notes psychologist Judith Grob of the University of Groningen in the Netherlands.
How smiling influences and affects others
There’s a reason for the popular saying, “a smile is contagious,” because it actually is.
This is because the cingulate cortex area of the brain, which controls unconscious automatic responses, will affect our facial expressions whether they are ours or whether we are unconsciously imitating others. So when we smile, others will likely smile back unconsciously.
I tried this experiment with my family, and yes, they thought that I was acting strange at first, but then the corners of my husband’s eyes crinkled, and my son began to cackle. Our animal rescues even picked up on the infectious smiling energy and began exuberantly running through the house, throwing toys in the air, and barking loudly.
The fascinating thing about this finding is that when we cause someone to smile back at us, we are in turn bathing their brains with the same endorphins that we are feeling, which creates a happier, healthier life for everyone.
And as for that morning when everything seemed to go wrong? The external stressors were quickly subdued through the symbiotic relationship of smiling. I smile, you smile, and we smile together.
Smile more and observe the numerous benefits. We have nothing to lose but so much to gain, because an authentic smile has its own magic.
The world is a happier place when we smile, so why not try it?
“Be the reason someone smiles. Be the reason someone feels loved and believes in the goodness in people.”—Roy T. Bennett