I am blessed with naturally feeling happy most of the time, but I know that is not true for many people. I found this article really hit some great points and I will personally have it as a reference when I can use a “happy-boost”.

When you want to feel happy
by Dr. Maoshing Ni - a Yahoo alternative health expert

No one can live a long and healthy life without the will to go on; sometimes mood swings can make us feel that life is too much for us.

A bad mood not only gives you a gloomy outlook, it also lowers your immune function, leading the way to illness. Here are some suggestions to lift your mood, your spirit, and your health.

1. A Laughing Matter
“Laugh Therapy,” pioneered by Norman Cousins, has turned out to have real substance. Research has discovered that laughter and joy boost immune functions, especially the production of the natural killer cells that help defend the body from illness and cancer.

Laughter also increases the release of endorphins - compounds that give you a sense of well-being - in your brain. Without a doubt, joyful people liver longer and healthier lives. So read your favorite comics, watch your favorite comedies, and laugh it up!

2. Amino Acid for Restored Mindset
When an imbalance or deficiency is creating a bad mood, the Europeans use supplements of a natural compound found in human cells to regulate mood and restore a healthy mindset. SAMe (S-adenosyl-L-methionine) is produced from methionine, an amino acid that plays a role in the production of uplifting neurotransmitters like serotonin and dopamine.

One study indicated that SAMe worked on patients who had unsuccessful results with conventional antidepressants. To get a boost from SAMe, take a supplement combining it with vitamins B6 and B12.

3. Hands-On Healing
Human touch increases the production of endorphins, growth hormone, and DHEA, all of which lengthen your life span and lower the negative impact of stress. Studies have found that patients who are regularly touched recover faster than those who are not touched. So give someone a hug and feel both of your moods improve.

4. Boost Your “Youth Hormones”
You don’t need pills to flood your body with a rejuvenating flood of growth hormones. Research has found that doing squats and leg presses will greatly increase your natural production of the “youth hormone”. Increased growth hormone translates to an elevated mood, among other physical benefits. Keep it up with weight training, knee bends, push-ups, and rowing.

5. Take a Bracing Breath
Breathing correctly is important for dispelling the toxins and wastes from your body; in fact, it is estimated that we expel only about 30 percent of toxins in our bodies through the bowels and bladder-the rest is all respiratory. Breathing is also a great way to clear your mind, boost your energy, and improve your mood. Practice deep, slow, rhythmic, breathing daily with mind-body disciplines such as tai chi, yoga, qigong, and meditation.

6. Smell the Joy
Research has shown that smell has a definite impact on our bodies and minds. When you stimulate the olfactory nerves inside your nose, you activate the limbic system of your brain, which is associated with moods and memory. This concept is instrumental to aromatherapy, a natural health tradition that makes use of the healing powers of plants with strong scents.

Aromatherapy recommends treating depression with jasmine, eucalyptus for exhilaration, and grapefruit to increase alertness and joy. Just put a dab of the essential oils from these plants on your temples, back of your neck, or acupressure points. Another option? Boil the herb in water and inhale the steam through your nose.

7. Feel Fine with Flowers
There is a reason that flowers are the traditional get-well gesture. Colorful flowers have a powerful influence on moods; they can uplift a patient’s mood and even combat stress. One study found that during a five-minute typing assignment, people sitting next to a flowering bouquet were more relaxed than those who sat near foliage-only plants.

I hope these tips help the good feelings flow! I invite you to visit often and share your own personal health and longevity tips with me.

May you live long, live strong, and live happy!

-Dr. Mao

Below is a recent article with “good news” on the job front. With new manager openings on the rise, you can expect to see improvements at all levels in job openings.

The number of online job postings for U.S. managers and executives rose for the first time last month since November, a sign that hiring activity for salaried professionals is finally starting to improve.

CareerCast.com/JobSerf Employment Index, May 2009

The CareerCast.com/JobSerf Employment Index, a new hiring index that measures managerial recruitment activity nationally, found that the number of job openings posted online for C-level, VP, director and other salaried candidates had an index value of 56.6 in May 2009, up from 41.4 in April 2009. The index uses data from each matching month of 2007 as its base, with monthly index values for that year equaling 100.

“The data shows that after a long drought, there’s been a healthy uptick in demand for managers and executives,” says Tony Lee, publisher of CareerCast.com. “This positive trend could indicate the beginning of a reversal of our economic downturn, as companies find that they can’t wait any longer to fill vacant managerial positions.” However, despite the recent improvement, managerial job postings are still down 41% from May 2008, when they posted an index value of 95.8.

Susan Murphy can attest to the improving market for executive job hunters. Ms. Murphy (not her real name) lost her job in January managing a customer service center at a Philadelphia-area auto dealership. She quickly discovered that similar jobs in the auto industry were non-existent, so she started focusing on jobs in other sectors. She says she averaged two interviews a week from February through April, but the only offers she received required a step back into customer service as a representative with a large pay cut. Her search ended in May, however, when she accepted a position as a manager of residential housing at a nearby university. She says networking with colleagues led to the opportunity, which she thinks she landed due to her ability to keep customers — in this case students — satisfied even when problems arise, a skill she says will work well in a college environment.

The CareerCast.com/Job Serf Employment Index is an exclusive barometer showing the change in managerial job openings posted online. The Index reveals the differences in job listings by month, and offers trends and forecasts using proprietary employment data gathered by a team of researchers.

“Since last September, there had been a rapid deterioration in the volume of managerial jobs online,” says Jay Martin, JobSerf’s chairman. “However, May’s gain in the Index almost completely recovered the past three months of losses, and in the Northeast and Southeast, job-posting activity is already back to the same levels they were in January.”

The slowest regions of the country to recover have been the Midwest and Western states, which have seen only about 60% of the gains experienced by the rest of the nation. In comparing metropolitan areas, the Washington, D.C., area remained the highest of the major cities evaluated, reporting about eight times as many job listings online per capita as compared to the lowest, which was Detroit.

What makes the CareerCast.com/JobSerf index unique is that it measures job postings across a wide range of different online job boards and job search engines, not just one or two of the largest boards. In addition, each listing is manually analyzed and verified to be a legitimate job opening. A typical month’s count includes more than one million job listings tracked by the JobSerf research team.

“In our discussions with both corporate and executive recruiters, it’s clear that demand is rising for managers who can fill the holes left by layoffs, attrition and delayed hiring,” says Lee. “The majority of employers are seeing rising revenues — or at least an end to falling revenues — which signals that it’s time to start competing again for top managerial talent.”