Teaching happiness to men with HIV boosts their health
"Even in the midst of this stressful experience of testing positive for HIV, coaching people to feel happy, calm and satisfied -- what we call positive affect -- appears to influence important health outcomes," said lead author Judith Moskowitz, professor of medical social sciences and director of research at the Osher Center for Integrative Medicine at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. This is believed to be the first test of a positive emotion intervention in people newly diagnosed with HIV. Based on the study results, the intervention is promising for people in the initial stages of adjustment to any serious chronic illness. The paper was published recently in the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology . The HIV study is part of a larger body of positive affect research being conducted by Moskowitz. She also is studying the health effects of teaching the skills to individuals with type 2 diabetes, women with metastatic breast cancer and c...