PSYCHOLOGY/LIFE: Singing Boosts Happiness

I quoted a piece of research in my lastest article for SHE magazine ("Happiness is not a handbag", October edition, p87-88) about the positive impact of music and singing on mood and immunity, which I've started aplying more formally in my own life. As a youngster I sang in a school choir until I was 14 - and then opted for netball and hockey in my lunchtimes instead - but never gave up the love of singing and so it is I've started singing with Rock Choir on Thursday nights in Hertfordshire. My first session last week was absolutely brilliant. The leader, Abby, is the most warm, enthusiastic and welcoming lady and what makes the choir so brilliant is that you don't have to be able to sing to be part of it. I am totally enamoured and hope Rock Choir spreads throughout the UK and I can encourage all clients to give it a go if boosting their mental wellbeing, happiness or social life is on their agenda.

An American singing group, Senior Singers Chorale, have been of interest to an American psychiatrist, Gene Cohen, who found that compared with a control group of the same age, the singers visit their doctotrs less frequently, suffer less depression, use less medication and have more full social lives. So singing is a great health booster and tonic for ageing well. Let's hope Rock Choir continues as long as I do.

PSYCHOLOGY: Positive Self-Statements

Show me a much publicised self-development guru who hasn't at some point espoused the benefits of positive mantras and I'll show you a woman who's got that elusive life-balance thing sorted. Hmmm, can't think of one? Neither can I. Well positive mantras are old hat when it comes to people who probably need them the most. Research by Canadian psychologists published in Psychological Science earlier this year found that people with low self-esteem who repeated a positive self-statement ("I'm a loveable person") or who focussed on how that statement was true felt worse than those who did not. It seems positive self-talk done in this way is only good for people who have good to high levels of self-esteem already. So should we wave away the word-wand altogether? I don't think so. Let me explain. My take out from the research is that the problem lies in the perecived truth/untruth of the statement. People with low self-esteem may recoil from such overtly positive statements because they perecive them to be untrue. If we were to tone down the statement to "I could be loved by someone" for example, it may be easier to accept and believe. It may also be worth the individual who wishes to raise his or her self-esteem to spend time trying to objectively review how negative statements (and positive statements they would like to hold about themselves) are true and untrue. Aiming for balanced thinking rather than all-out positive ra-ra-ra could be the answer. What do you think? Share your thoughts using the comment button.

LIFE: Maxi Mums

Despite spending the night rolling round my bed with raging headache, sweats and delicate intestines I made it into London yesterday to do a series of radio interviews and a webcast. God knows how I managed it and thanks go to the pin-stripe- suited man who gave up his seat on the 0738 (you probably thought I'd had one too many the night before, but sadly no). Anyway, yesterday heard me spouting on about the rise of the 'maxi-mum', the new parent in the playground who's proudly outshining the polish of the'yummy mummy' of yester-economy. Who's got time, money and inclination to worry about personifying perfection these days? The maxi-mum is happy with her lot, does the best she can and recognises the benefit of looking 'good enough' at the school gates. She's earning cash to keep the household afloat and great at maximising value in the ways she spends her money and minutes. Thanks to Olay for conducting the consumer research that gave me opportunity to talk about the rise of this savvy group of mums (and for giving the world regenerist 30 second wrinkle filler). If I was mad for Robbie Williams I might still be glowing from the knowledge that where my bottom rested yesterday, so did his last week as he broadcast himself around the world.