What if your happiness is a choice? 

Do you find that thought exhilarating, or feel compelled to tell me all the reasons it’s not?

Reasons such as:

• “My parents, spouse, partner, friends, etc., wouldn’t approve of what would make me happy, or think I should do something different.”
• “I’m afraid I’ll disappoint or hurt my parents, spouse, partner, friends, etc.”
• “I’m trapped in my current job or situation.”
• “I don’t have the time, money, experience, etc.”
• “I have too much to do.”
• “My life is good enough as it is.”
• “I might fail.”
• “People will think I’m crazy.”
• “I’m too old.”
• “I’m too young.”
• “I don’t know if that would really make me happy.”
• “I might make the wrong choice.”

 Your reasons may be totally and completely valid.

Just recognize that either consciously or by default, you are making a choice.

The question is:

• Are you making the choice that feels best to you?
• Are you making the choice that aligns with your dreams, goals, core values, and beliefs?
• Are you making the choice that is helping you be authentically you?
• Are you making the choice that when it’s time to look back on your life, you’ll feel good about making?

More likely than not, your body and weight are being impacted by this choice.

Most women believe that when they are slim, then they will be happy. But they have this backwards. When you are happy, then you will find it easier to be slim.

There are many reasons this is true, but let’s just look at the physical impact on your body.

Choosing thoughts and actions that make you happy creates positive anabolic energy that releases endorphins, testosterone, and body supporting hormones that help your body heal, rebuild, and flow with physical energy. 

And Yes! Spending the majority of time in anabolic energy makes it easier for you to release the weight.

Negative thoughts and feelings generate catabolic energy, which releases harmful chemicals and hormones and other physical reactions that impacts your body down to the cellular level—actually making it easier to gain and harder to release weight. Feelings such as fear, distress, disappointment, frustration, blame, and anger are all catabolic. 

Accepting and embracing your responsibility for your own happiness is an important step, but it does not guarantee that you will then choose happiness.

There can still be a stumbling block.

Typically, it’s fear. 

Fear of failure, fear of what others will think, fear that you are less than Who you truly are.

Fear is a blindfold pulled over our collective eyes. It is not Truth.

• The Truth is it is impossible to fail, because there can be no failure where there is learning and growth. And every experience is valuable.
• The Truth is what others think does not matter. They do not—and cannot—know your heart. You have to search within to find that, and you are the only one who can know your heart fully.
• The Truth is you cannot fail because your Spirit is Eternal. The point of life is living. There is no way to get it wrong.

Making the choice to be happy means letting go of false beliefs about Who you are, what you are capable of, and what you deserve.

In order to choose happiness, you must:

• Accept 100 percent responsibility for your life.
• Let go of fear that does not serve you.
• Listen to your own heart.
• Have faith in your eternal nature.

“I wish I’d had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.”

This was the number 1 regret of the dying, according to Bronnie Ware in her book, The Top Five Regrets of the Dying – A Life Transformed by the Dearly Departing.

What dream would you regret not fulfilling? Begin making the choices that will help fulfill that dream today.

Together we can do it!