Page 83 - Natural Health (February 2020)

BODY

THE LOVE LIST

Write down five things you love about someone close to you

■ This health snack involves inding a quiet place where you can think about and
write down ive things you love about someone close to you. It could be your
partner, child, a parent, a work colleague, your boss. You can choose a diferent
person to write about each day or stick to the same person and write down
more good things about them. When you go through the process of thinking
about and then writing down the things you love about someone else, it can be
deeply moving. When you write something down, the exercise tends to be more
powerful, as the act of writing forces you to slow your mind a little and really
process what you are thinking about.
■ Because humans are natural problem solvers we tend to automatically focus our
attention on the negative aspects of the people we love. We might be annoyed
that our partner always leaves the milk out on the counter, forgetting about all
the other wonderful qualities they have. We might focus on irritating things, like
one of your friends always having to choose where you go out to eat, at the same
time forgetting what a good friend they are. By forcing ourselves to focus on the
positive, even for ive minutes, we can transform our relationships for the better.
■ Patients regularly report back to me that, by practising this health snack
regularly, they increase their focus and become happier, calmer, less resentful and
more patient. By looking at other people in a more compassionate frame of mind,
they inevitably become better people themselves.

By looking at other
people in a more

compassionate frame
of mind, they inevitably
become better people

themselves

reasons for this, one of the most common
sources I see among my patients is the
simple fact that we’re all too busy. The harsh
realities of modern life mean that many of us
are not prioritising time with our partners.
We live in a time in which both parents
typically work, the extended family is not
around so much to support us and we’re
continually being distracted by screens.
Our relationships are under attack by our
twenty-first- century lifestyles.
The following health snacks are all about BOOKshelf
improving the quality of our connections with Extracted from
friends, family and partners. Just five minutes Feel better in 5 by
a day, spent nurturing these vital relationships Dr Rangan Chatterjee
(Penguin Life, £16.99)
can have a wonderful effect on your mood
and your physical health.

NATURAL HEALTH 83