Thumbs up or thumbs down = balanced mood

By Kali Jennifer Patrick with A Journey into Health

If you put yourself out there on social media, whether it’s in a blog, a video, or even a simple Facebook post, you’re likely to get, well…feedback.

Several months ago out of curiosity, I went to the “A Journey Into Health” YouTube Channel and sorted my video posts by “most popular”. The most popular video is (and continues to be) the Yoga for Mind-body Balance one. I remember being a bit surprised since this is a longer video than I usually publish. But what caught my attention next was the “thumbs up/down” indicator next to the video.

My mind went something like this: “three thumbs up! Awesome!” “Wait, what??! Two thumbs down? Why would anyone give this video a thumbs down? And TWO people!?” I could feel my smile turning upside down (you know, in alignment with the thumbs). Fortunately soon after noticing that sensation in my body, and those thoughts in my mind, I realized that I had a choice. And that in this moment, a simple image carried some potential to affect my mood.

In Erroneous Zones, Dr. Wayne Dyer suggests that we live in an “approval seeking” culture. He also suggests that it’s OK to want to please someone else; what’s not is when we need to please someone else in order to feel good about ourselves. If we have this need, it means that we need external validation as a way of masking a lack of internal trust.

Read more, here.

About A Journey into Health:

In 1998 Kali added power yoga into her fitness routine to increase her flexibility, and started exploring meditation to offset the stress of her high-tech corporate job. It wasn’t until many years later–after several significant challenges and deep internal work–that she started to see more clearly what it meant to be healthy.

In 2012 Kali took the full leap into mind-body wellness, forming A Journey Into Health. She became a 200-hour certified yoga instructor, found energy healing and holistic nutrition: she’s also an Usui Reiki Master and an Eating Psychology Coach. Kali also achieved the “experienced” yoga teaching designation along with her 500-hour certification in Yoga Therapy. She teaches group classes, offers private yoga, coaching, and Reiki sessions, as well as gives workshops in and around the Austin area.