Unrealistic Optimism Can Have A Negative Effect on Health

Unrealistic optimism appears when an individual is perfectly aware of the bad consequences his acts are followed by and he also knows the high probability for these consequences to occur and still he chooses to perform the act, hoping that nothing bad will happen to him. Said in a different way, he knows where he is situated in the Gaussian curve, he knows he is average and the chance to follow the natural line (bad actions - bad consequences) is over 66%, but he decides to believe that he is an outsider, in technical terms, and he will surely escape the pattern.

Here are some questions that illustrate that fact and unfortunately most of us suffer from this "syndrome": which are the chances to have alcohol problems if we drink it daily? Which are the chances to get STD or to have a heart attack? Over 70% will respond that the risk is not significant, 20% will answer that they consider the risk as real threat and only 10% will admit that if they drink daily or have sex with multiple partners they have a high risk to become alcoholic or get STD. So this unrealistic optimism has a strong influence on the things we can control about our health. We can control our diet, we can drink moderately, we can quit smoking, but the great majority doesn't even think about this because they believe they will handle the situation better than the others and sometimes they don't even believe such things can happen to themselves.

When we practice this type of optimism we are really impartial about the way we see reality. We want to be informed and we want to know how things work but when we really find out we try to put ourselves outside that situation and we kind of see the world painted in pink. But this way of seeing things may cause serious health problems because we don't believe our lives need changes and precautions, so we keep on eating loads of fast food for example. The truth is that in most situations unhealthy behavior doesn't cause serious problems but the risk is really high, and it is not really worthwhile. The great number of students who get AIDS or STD every year or those who have serious car accidents because of the beers drank do not represent the total number of those who undertake these behavior but they represent the category who decided that they can escape the high risk and got the conclusion that in their case everything is going to be OK. This is not called ignorance, because they know the consequences, but is an obvious example of unrealistic optimism.

Another annoying example is that of high school students who start smoking. They use different illusions in order to calm their conscience and to feel more comfortable about what they are doing. They might convince themselves they will quit in 2 years, other companions can become addicted but it won't happen to them, or they are saying that they buy cigarettes with a lower quantity of nicotine or they don't inhale. The truth is smokers know the unhealthy effects of smoking and they also know the high risk of getting lung cancer, but this applies to the rest of the population. Again, it won't happen to them. Generally, they say that the risk of having heart or lung diseases is lowered for them when compared to the other smokers and it is only a little over the average of a non-smoker.

In conclusion, optimism has wonderful advantages in the health domain. When people suffer from a serious disease and they fight it, such as cancer or AIDS, optimism is very important. It helps them cope with unpleasant treatments, and a positive state of mind can increase the body's capacity to resist the disease. In this case even the unrealistic optimism might work, but is disastrous when preventing the appearance of risk. If you consider that you can drive while you are drunk, or that none of the persons you have intimate relationships might have STD, you can really encounter some bad consequences which lead to regret.

Yes, regret but it doesn't have to stop here! You can have real help in the One who created you and knew you'd make poor choices! If that is your case now - as we all are in these kinds of situations at times- ask God for help because His Son, Jesus Christ has already paid the price for your treatment! Yes, it has been fully paid for when He died for you at the cross! He paid for the pain in your heart even for your physical problems and addictions, and He'll give you peace removing fear and despair, He'll give you love and healing for the wounds of rejection you might have suffered. Remember that you were not your parents idea! Yes, you came trough them but not from them, you came here on Earth from God Himself and you came with a great purpose to fulfill!

Ask God to tell you what He wants for your life, go to a good Bible based Church and keep God first in your life and you will see how He is a Master in transforming broken lives! May you know His love for you!