☀️ optimism is a skill

Optimism isn’t something you’re born with or not.

It’s trainable. I know this because my default used to always be "Brace yourself for the worst case scenario. You won't catch me over here thinking things will work out! I won't be made a FOOL."

But optimism is a skill and it is a strategic one as it sends signals that your nervous system learns from.

Here are 7 science-backed reasons optimism helps your body work better, not just your mindset.

Lower stress hormones
Optimistic people tend to have lower baseline cortisol and recover from stress faster. Translation: your nervous system stands down instead of staying on high alert all day.
Stronger immune function
Optimism is linked to better T-cell response, higher natural killer cell activity, and stronger responses to vaccines. Hope doesn’t replace medicine, but it helps your immune system do its job.
Less chronic inflammation
Higher optimism is associated with lower levels of inflammatory markers like CRP and IL-6. Chronic inflammation is tied to everything from heart disease to depression, so this matters more than we realize.
Better heart health
Optimistic people show lower blood pressure, better heart rate variability, and reduced risk of coronary heart disease — even when lifestyle factors are controlled for.
Healthier nervous system balance
Optimism is linked to higher parasympathetic (rest-and-digest) activity. That means faster recovery after stress, better digestion, better sleep, and more emotional regulation.
More adaptive brain wiring
Optimistic expectation activates the prefrontal cortex and dopamine pathways tied to motivation and learning. This helps the brain stay flexible instead of slipping into "learned helplessness".
Longer lifespan
Large longitudinal studies show optimism predicts longevity, independent of income, baseline health, or health behaviors. It’s not naïve — it’s protective.

The part I don’t want you to miss:
Optimism isn’t pretending everything is fine. It’s teaching your nervous system that the future is workable.

And because your brain is plastic and your nervous system learns by repetition, optimism can be practiced.

Small habits.
Repeated evidence.
Gentle rewires.

That’s the work.
And it counts.

Next week, I'm going to walk you through some actionable steps you can do to start to train optimism as your default and more of my story of how I went from default: worst case scenario to "what's the best that could happen?"

Real quick ask! If you enjoy the Monday Motivator, would you mind hitting reply and giving me the world's quickest review? Nothing fancy! I'm updating some marketing (you might have noticed!) and I could really use your help! THANKS!

xoxo- Katie Day (write back soon!)

P.S. If you want to dig into the research, here’s a short roundup:

Segerstrom & Sephton (2010) – Optimistic expectancies and cell-mediated immunity (Psychological Science)
Cohen et al. (2006) – Positive emotional style predicts resistance to illness (Psychosomatic Medicine)
Roy et al. (2010) – Association between optimism and inflammation (Brain, Behavior, and Immunity)
Boehm & Kubzansky (2012) – Positive well-being and cardiovascular health (Psychological Bulletin)
Kim et al. (2014) – Optimism and reduced risk of coronary heart disease (Circulation)
Sharot et al. (2007) – Neural mechanisms of optimism bias (Nature)
Lee et al. (2019) – Optimism and longevity (PNAS)