Hope is Healthy
You are about to go to the hospital for a routine surgical procedure. Which attitude is healthier?
A. Id better find out everything I can about this operation you can never know too much.
B. Dont tell me the details. Its going to be fine.
Answer B is supposed to be the wrong one. Its an example of what psychologists call denial, a defence mechanism that minimizes uncomfortable information. Denial, they have argued, is stupid, self-defeating and ultimately dangerous.
But research is showing that answer B is a faster route to recovery. Denial of a certain sort and at certain times can be healthy. Of course, you do need to pay attention to some unpleasant facts. The trick is to know when its helpful to worry and when its counterproductive.
Out-and-out denial may be the best approach to surgery, according to Richard S. Lazarus, professor of psychology at the University of California at Berkeley. With Frances Cohen, Lazarus studied 61 patients about to undergo operations . In general, patients followed one of two mental strategies; avoidance or vigilance.
Typically, avoiders had not discussed their surgery in detail with anyone, didnt want to know about it and didnt dwell upon its risks.
In contrast, vigilant types were alert to every detail. Many sought out articles about their disorders. They wanted to know the risks of surgery, the risks if surgery was not performed, the surgical procedures, the potential complications and the likelihood of recurrence.
When Lazarus and Cohen compared the two groups after surgery, they found that avoiders got on much better. They had a lower incidence of postoperative complications such as nausea , headache, fever and infection. The net result: they were discharged sooner.
One reason may be that their denial make room for hope, or at least for a positive outlook, even under the grimmest of conditions. Never deny the diagnosis, but do deny the negative opinion that may go with it, advises Norman Cousins, author of Anatomy of an Illness and The Healing Heart. Why? Because grim warnings about diseases come from statistics on the average case. Cousins believes that most patients, given hope and determination, have a good chance to transcend the averages.
Adds Dr. Hackett: Deniers see the machines theyre hooked up to as helping them to get well, not as a sign of a badly functioning heart. Those who feel most positive about their ability to get well tend to do better than those who fear and worry more.
Of course, none of these researchers would conclude that denial is the best approach to all medical matters. A diabetic must monitor blood sugar; a kidney patient must keep track of dialysis ; a woman who finds a lump in her breast must not delay in having it diagnosed.
2016高三英语一轮(外研版)复习:高考专项突破 完形1
2016届高考英语一轮复习对点题组练习 专项12《状语从句》
2016届高考英语一轮复习专项练习 1《冠词》
山西省2016届高考英语一轮复习学案(新人教版) Uint 1《women of achievement》必修4
山西省2016届高考英语一轮复习学案(新人教版) Uint 3《life in the future》必修5
山西省2016届高考英语一轮复习学案(新人教版) Uint 3《Computers》必修2
2016届高考英语一轮复习专项练习 6《特殊句式及其他》
2016届高考英语一轮复习专项练习 11《名词性从句》
2016届高考英语一轮复习专项练习 5《形容词和副词》
2016届高考英语一轮复习对点题组练习 专项11《名词性从句》
2016届高考英语一轮复习对点题组练习 专项10《定语从句》
山西省2016届高考英语一轮复习学案(新人教版) Uint 2《working the land》必修4
2016届高考英语一轮复习专项练习 12《状语从句》
2016届高考英语一轮复习专项练习 4《代词》
2016届高考英语一轮复习专项练习 10《定语从句》
2016届高考英语一轮复习对点题组练习 专项1《冠词》
2016届高考英语一轮复习对点题组练习 专项2《名词》
山西省2016届高考英语一轮复习学案(新人教版) Uint 2《Poems》选修6
山西省2016届高考英语一轮复习学案(新人教版) Uint 2《English around the world》必修1
2016届高考英语一轮复习专项练习 3《介词和介词短语》
2016届高考英语一轮复习对点题组练习 专项3《介词和介词短语》
山西省2016届高考英语一轮复习学案(新人教版) Uint 2《The United Kingdom》必修5
山西省2016届高考英语一轮复习学案(新人教版) Uint 2《Cloning》选修8
山西省2016届高考英语一轮复习学案(新人教版) Uint 3《a taste of English humor》必修4
2016届高考英语一轮复习对点题组练习 专项9《情态动词和虚拟语气》
山西省2016届高考英语一轮复习学案(新人教版) Uint 1《Great Scientists》必修5
山西省2016届高考英语一轮复习学案(新人教版) Uint 2《Robots》选修7
2016高三英语一轮(外研版)复习:写作进行时4
2016届高考英语一轮复习对点题组练习 专项8《非谓语动词》
山西省2016届高考英语一轮复习学案(新人教版) Uint 1《Living well》选修7
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