The Power of Forgiveness
Physical Benefits
" It may come as a surprise that forgiving is a skill you can hone, and that granting forgiveness may actually do more for you than the person you forgive."
NURSING A GRUDGE
Researchers found that mentally nursing a grudge puts your body through the same strains as a major stressful event: Muscles tense, blood pressure rises, and sweating increases.
BETRAYAL Better heart health. One study found a link between forgiving someone for a betrayal and improvements in blood pressure and heart rate, and a decreased workload for the heart. SPOUSES Stronger relationships. A 2004 study showed that women who were able to forgive their spouses and feel benevolent toward them resolved conflicts more effectively. BACK PAIN Reduced pain. A small study on people with chronic back pain found that those who practiced meditation focusing on converting anger to compassion felt less pain and anxiety than those who received regular care. RESPONSIBILITY Greater happiness. When you forgive someone, you make yourself-rather than the person who hurt you-responsible for your happiness. SHARING One survey showed that people who talk about forgiveness during psychotherapy sessions experience greater improvements than those who don't.
From the Harvard Women's Health Watch 2004
There are ways to manage the situation without running the other way. I will be sharing more about this in future messages from Mary. For now, here is some really interesting information about
"the physical impact" of negative emotion & the power of forgiveness in the workplace.
Every emotion we experience has a corresponding physical reaction within the body. Frustration, anger, sadness and other "emotions" can be identified and even tracked with the proper instrumentation, as demonstrated by Heart Math an international organization dedicated to increasing awareness of Heart-Brain connection. Research shows our "electromagnetic field" can be felt by others....
Consider the obvious: What emotions are you susceptible to from others because you leave yourself open to their negativity?
Consider: Pay attention to how you "feel" as you move from person to person during the day.
from Heart Math Research 2012 | 
