THE SIGHTS, SOUNDS & SCENTS OF THE SEASON – WHY THEY’RE ACTUALLY GOOD FOR YOU!

THE SIGHTS, SOUNDS & SCENTS OF THE SEASON – WHY THEY’RE ACTUALLY GOOD FOR YOU!

Hello everyone and Welcome back. It’s not quite #Wellness Wednesday or #Factual Friday, but it is Christmas Eve. A Holiday that so many around the world celebrate on this day, December 24.

But, whether or not you and your family celebrate Christmas – this time of year embodies so many different traditions and cultural celebrations of people from around the world. The end of the year has always been a time of reflection, a time of giving thanks and a time of renewal and hope for the New Year ahead.

December is the month in which Buddhists celebrate Bodhi Day and Christians celebrate Christmas. Hanukkah is celebrated by the Jewish faith and Hindus celebrate Pancha Ganapati. Kwanzaa is celebrated by African Americans and Id al-Fitr is celebrated by Muslims.  And, Yule – or the Winter Solstice – is celebrated by Native Americans, Aboriginals and Pagans around the world.

Each of these holidays, of course, is unique and celebrated in different ways. Yet, there are many things that are common to each as well. For example, almost every holiday celebration around the world includes the use of light in some form, music and incense or spices. These are very traditional aspects of holiday celebrations and with good reason. For, they not only add drama, beauty and atmosphere to the celebration – but, they enhance our physical and mental well-being.

THE SIGHTS – LIGHT:  Light has always been the element understood to dispel darkness – be it internal darkness or external – emotional or physical. Light in all its many forms has been a part of holiday celebrations for centuries. Sometimes light comes in the form of candlelight or artificial light as in the small decorative lights of the various holidays. But, the important thing here is that all light regardless of form has a beneficial effect on living creatures in many different ways.

White light has always been associated with new beginnings – the pristine – the innocent – and simple goodness. It has a calming effect on the mind and nervous system – and is known to have a soothing influence. Blue lights are common in many holiday celebrations and reflect the color of the sky and the ocean. This color creates a tranquil and peaceful effect and causes the body to produce calming chemicals such as serotonin. And green, which is one of the most popular colors of holiday decorating, symbolizes nature – and all that is natural, calming and refreshing. It has a healing effect on the human body and brings a sense of stability and hope.

Red, of course, is the color of strength and love — while yellow is the color of sunshine and cheerfulness. It creates optimism and enhances concentration and intellect.  Now, orange is a combination of red and yellow – which brings together the energy of red and the happiness of yellow. And, purple combines the stable tranquility of blue and the energy of red.

So you see, surrounding ourselves with light of many colors can improve our mental and physical well-being. The Sights of this particular Season are not only pleasing to the eye, but beneficial to our emotional, physical and mental well-being as well.

THE SOUNDS – MUSIC: Every holiday at this time of year encompasses some type of music. And, music is, indeed, a universal language to which everyone can relate. The beneficial effects of music on the human psyche has been documented for decades. Yes, we all know it simply makes us feel good. The subjective experience is undeniable. But, the objective evidence is undeniable as well.

Music can lift our mood and listening to classical music in particular can reduce depression by up to 25 percent. It can lower our blood pressure and reduce stress. And, if we sing along with our favorite tunes we actually use more lung capacity, which means our bodies and internal organs benefit from more oxygen. In addition, if you are a member of a choral group this holiday, studies have found that singing helps boost our immune system. In fact, it has been found that during rehearsals choir members can experience an increase of 150 percent of a protein that helps the body fight infections.

And, if that were not enough, listening to music can help patients recover from strokes and reduce epileptic seizures. Music can help those with Alzheimer’s disease by increasing the production of mood-enhancing chemicals and improving the quality of their personal interaction. And, music can help Parkinson’s patients by reducing depression, anxiety and feelings of social isolation.

Listening to music also can reduce pain and some pieces actually appear to improve our spatial IQ.  Quite simply, music elevates our mood and our enjoyment. It’s a beautiful and pleasant part of the Holiday Season. So, enjoy it in all its forms – now and throughout the New Year.

THE SCENTS – INCENSE & SPICE: And now, for the scents and smells of the Season. Our sense of smell is, perhaps, the strongest of our five senses. Our sense of smell impacts almost every aspect of our life, including our dreams and emotions, our concentration and memory, our levels of pain and stress and our feelings of love and romance. While we don’t possess the olfactory ability of our canine companions, smell still plays a major role in both our emotions and physical and mental health.

And, at this time of year wonderful scents abound. Among the most popular, of course, are the scents of spice. Found in everything from foods, to candles, to incense and potpourri, the smell of different spices impacts our health in a significant way. Cinnamon, for instance, can boost our energy and heighten awareness. In fact, it can affect the trait of generosity as it can influence us to spend more! A fact that is not lost on retailers this time of year 🙂

The wonderful smell of vanilla can – believe it or not – satisfy our sweet tooth without us actually consuming the calories! It has a calming effect and induces feelings of home, family and well-being. And peppermint affects activity in the brain that can increase our energy, get us up in the morning and keep us going all day long. And the scent of fruit, including strawberries, apples and oranges can increase our awareness and perk up our taste buds.

Let’s not forget the scent of flowers! All kinds of flowers for all kinds of holidays. Roses produce calmness and reduce anxiety and stress. Lavender can reduce insomnia and chronic pain. Jasmine relaxes the nerves, increases deep sleep and boosts alertness during the day. For, no other sense stimulates memory more than smell – especially at this time year when memories abound of holidays past spent with family and friends.

So, whatever holiday you and your loved ones celebrate this time of year – or however you choose to celebrate it – revel in all the wonderful Sights, Sounds and Scents of the Season. They are not only beautiful, uplifting and mesmerizing – they are good for our Health!

Thanks for joining me everyone. Wishing you all a Joyful, Merry, Abundant and Healthy Holiday! Until next time,

TAKE THE COURSE AND TAKE CHARGE!

Image Courtesy of artur84 at FreeDigitalPhotos.net