Smile Therapy
A Smile Begins with a Prayer
When life feels too difficult, when you're too exhausted, and especially when you wonder if you'll ever smile again, start with a simple prayer asking God to help you smile.
Give me happiness, O Lord, for I give myself to you.
Psalm 86:4, NLT
Why Are Smiles Contagious?
Have you ever noticed that when you see someone yawn, it’s nearly impossible to keep yourself from yawning, too? From infancy, your brain reacts to facial feedback. That’s why when you smile at an infant, the child will smile back at you.
The part of your brain involving the unconscious mind will automatically imitate the facial expressions it sees. This is known as mimicry or automatic mimicry. You might also hear it called mood contagion or emotional contagion.
Your brain will cause you to subconsciously mirror or mimic the expression of faces you see. This is a proven scientific fact. Show someone pictures of people frowning or smiling and their facial expression will adjust to match. This means smiles are contagious.
The Ripple Effect of a Smile
A smile costs nothing but pays big dividends. When one person smiles, each person who sees that smile will smile, too. And each person who sees those smiles, will also smile.
A smile spreads faster than COVID-19.
Smile!
PASS IT ON!
Your Smile Has Superpowers
In addition to the other people affected by your smile, that silly grin on your face performs mighty acts on your mind, emotions, and even your body.
A basic web search will turn up dozens, or perhaps hundreds, of benefits to smiling. Let’s highlight a few:
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A smile improves your looks and even makes you look younger.
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A smile makes you seem likable and approachable to others, so their positive response to you will improve your social confidence.
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A smile is linked to longevity and success in life, probably because it makes you feel better and increases your confidence.
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A smile relieves anxiety and eases depression.
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A smile lowers your blood pressure.
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A smile improves your mood to match your smile.
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A smile changes your voice, so smile when you answer the phone.
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A smile releases brain-chemicals that actually improve your immune system.
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A smile (or the chemicals it releases) acts as a natural pain killer.
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A smile makes your brain happier than eating chocolate. I’m not making this up. Here’s what the writer at Psychology Today had to say:
Teach Yourself to Smile
If you’re trying to improve your mood, it’s imperative for you to find reasons to smile several times a day. How many times? At least once per hour, I’d say.
But what if you’re depressed and can’t muster a smile?
I’ve been there. Whoa, have I been there!
Okay, I have an experiment for you. According to Dr. David Burns, author of Feeling Good, the posture of your muscles triggers your brain to react to a smile. He suggests putting a pen or pencil in your mouth and holding it there for a few minutes, several times a day. The shape of your mouth around the pencil uses the same muscles as smiling.
The pencil trick does two things: One, it causes your brain to detect a smile and release “happy chemicals” and, two, it actually trains your muscles to smile. When you train your muscles to smile, you are more likely to actually do so spontaneously.
When I was depressed and heard this, I was skeptical. I wanted to prove him wrong because it seemed silly that something so simple could improve my mood. I held the pencil in my mouth a few times a day. The first couple days I didn’t notice much. But by the third day, I caught myself smiling spontaneously and discovered my mood was somewhat better. It really does work. Try it for yourself.
Wear a Half-Smile
When you want to feel a little bit better, but can't muster a full smile (or it seems insincere), wear a half-smile. It offers a pleasant neutral facial expression when you're around others and it creates a subtle lift in your spirits, too.
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Tighten your face muscles and then relax them.
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Keep your teeth slightly apart.
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Now bring up the corners of your mouth until you feel them (not a full smile).
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Hold this as you inhale and exhale three times.
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Practice maintaining your half-smile as you go throughout your day.
It can take time, but a half-smile can improve your mood. Give it a try.
Smile Therapy
As part of your daily smile therapy, it’s important to look at smiling faces. Spending a few minutes looking at smiling faces will inevitably make the corners of your mouth turn up.
When I’m depressed, I set aside time to watch videos of babies and puppies. No matter how bad I feel, babies make me smile. Afterwards, I feel better—more relaxed and resilient.
For your convenience, I’ve assembled a gallery of pictures of people smiling. Browse these images for a quick pick-me-up. It works.
 Smile Therapy 30Yes, you should rejoice, and I will share your joy. Philippians 2:18, NLT |  Smile Therapy 29Give me happiness, O Lord, for I give myself to you. Psalm 86:4, NLT |
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 Smile Therapy 28I will be filled with joy because of you. I will sing praises to your name, O Most High. Psalm 9:2, NLT |  Smile Therapy 27Your teeth are as white as sheep that are freshly washed. Your smile is flawless, each tooth matched with its twin. Song of Solomon 6:6, NLT |
 Smile Therapy 26You will show me the way of life, granting me the joy of your presence and the pleasures of living with you forever. Psalm 16:11, NLT |  Smile Therapy 25Be happy with those who are happy, and weep with those who weep. Romans 12:15, NLT |
 Smile Therapy 24And Sarah declared, “God has brought me laughter. All who hear about this will laugh with me.” Genesis 21:6, NLT |  Smile Therapy 23Everything seems to go wrong when you feel weak and depressed. But when you choose to be cheerful, every day will bring you more and more joy and fullness. Proverbs 15:15, TPT |
 Smile Therapy 22A cheerful heart puts a smile on your face, but a broken heart leads to depression. Proverbs 15:13, TPT |  Smile Therapy 21Eyes that focus on what is beautiful bring joy to the heart, and hearing a good report refreshes and strengthens the inner being. Proverbs 15:30, TPT |
 Smile Therapy 20Superficial laughter can hide a heavy heart, but when the laughter ends, the pain resurfaces. Proverbs 14:13, TPT |  Smile Therapy 19When they were discouraged, I smiled at them. My look of approval was precious to them. Job 29:24, NLT |
 Smile Therapy 18They may weep as they go out carrying their seed to sow, but they will return with joyful laughter and shouting with gladness as they bring back armloads of blessing and a harvest overflowing! Psalm 126:6, TPT |  Smile Therapy 17We laughed and laughed and overflowed with gladness. We were left shouting for joy and singing your praise. All the nations saw it and joined in, saying, “The Lord has done great miracles for them!” Psalm 126:2, TPT |
 Smile Therapy 16Anxious fear brings depression, but a life-giving word of encouragement can do wonders to restore joy to the heart. Proverbs 12:25, TPT |  Smile Therapy 15But let all your godly lovers be glad! Yes, let them all rejoice in your presence and be carried away with gladness. Let them laugh and be radiant with joy! Psalm 68:3, TPT |
 Smile Therapy 14A joyful, cheerful heart brings healing to both body and soul. But the one whose heart is crushed struggles with sickness and depression. Proverbs 17:22, TPT |  Smile Therapy 13Be cheerful with joyous celebration in every season of life. Let joy overflow, for you are united with the Anointed One! Philippians 4:4, TPT |
 Smile Therapy 12There I will go to the altar of God, to God—the source of all my joy. I will praise you with my harp, O God, my God! Psalm 43:4, NLT |  Smile Therapy 11Taste and see that the Lord is good. Oh, the joys of those who take refuge in him! Psalm 34:8, NLT |
 Smile Therapy 10Those who look to him for help will be radiant with joy; no shadow of shame will darken their faces. Psalm 34:5, NLT |  Smile Therapy 9Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again—rejoice! Philippians 4:4, NLT |
 Smile Therapy 8He will once again fill your mouth with laughter and your lips with shouts of joy. Job 8:21, NLT |  Smile Therapy 7A time to cry and a time to laugh. A time to grieve and a time to dance. Ecclesiastes 3:4, NLT |
 Smile Therapy 6This is the day the Lord has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it. Psalm 118:24, NLT |  Smile Therapy 5A glad heart makes a happy face; a broken heart crushes the spirit. Proverbs 15:13, NLT |
 Smile Therapy 4For the despondent, every day brings trouble; for the happy heart, life is a continual feast. Proverbs 15:15, NLT |  Smile Therapy 3A cheerful look brings joy to the heart; good news makes for good health. Proverbs 15:30, NLT |
 Smile Therapy 2A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit saps a person’s strength. Proverbs 17:22, NLT |  Smile Therapy 1She is clothed with strength and dignity, and she laughs without fear of the future. Proverbs 31:25, NLT |
Joy Will Come
I can say from experience that sometimes it feels as if you will never smile again.
Hang in there! Lean into God. Embrace him and his love for you.
Joy will come. Be patient, my friend. Joy will come.
Gaze upon him, join your life with his, and joy will come.
Your faces will glisten with glory.
You’ll never wear that shame-face again.
Psalm 34:5, TPT