To those who know me, it’s no secret that I tend to be a glass half-empty gal. I have friends that are glass half-full people. I can’t be around them for too long, it’s annoying. I believe the glass is defective; ergo, this month’s feature.

If you are a cynical, unrelenting, maniacal, menopausal woman with an axe to grind, put the knife down and listen up! If you are married to one, put the knife down and listen up!

According to a study released in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association, optimistic women have a lower risk of developing heart disease or dying from any cause compared to pessimistic women (yeah, right). Researchers also reported that women with a high degree of cynical hostility such as harboring hostile thoughts toward others (I hate your new hairdo) or having a general mistrust of people (prove it) were at a higher risk of dying (I feel sick …). However, their risk of developing heart disease was not changed. Lastly, optimists were less likely to have diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol or depressive symptoms, smoke, be sedentary or overweight (on my way to see my doctor).

I happened to catch the “Dr. Oz” show with guest Goldie Hawn talking about her new book, “10 Mindful Minutes.” Remember Goldie on “Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In?” Her topic was how she has handled depression and optimism by training her brain and being “aware.” Some good points were made on the show, and I just want to share them with you. There are areas in the brain that serve different purposes, like controlling behavior, creativity, problem solving and even optimism – apparently an underdeveloped area in my brain. We can retrain our brain into thinking positive rather than negative thoughts. You’ve heard it before when people say “think positive,” and you wanted to toss them over a cliff? Or, “find your happy place,” and I say, “OK, I found it, now get out.” I believe that it is what we think that impacts our feelings and then actions follow. The key is not to react but to respond. In responding to a situation that may be stressful, negative, angry or fearful, it might be a good practice to take a “time-out” to calm down. Allowing some time to regroup actually may have a real connection to allowing your brain, not your mind, to also calm down, neurophysiologically speaking.

Getting into the habit of optimism builds up certain parts of the brain, so interventions like meditation and positive thinking may actually help change how your brain really works! Your heart does the same thing – regular, habitual cardiovascular exercise increases the bed of blood vessels that surround the heart and therefore delivers more blood flow.

So, in conclusion, be aware of your situation, think positive, take time out, respond, exercise and make optimism a habit! Visit www.MyFitScript.com for women and heart disease signs and symptoms. See you next month!