Hope is the anticipation of something good to come. Too often, we take hope for granted. For example, we set our alarm clocks naturally hoping for tomorrow to come. However, hope is not alway a conscious thought…it’s just there. Hope exists in our hearts whether we are conscious of it or not.

Our attitude plays a significant role in how we feel both mentally and physically. In fact, hope can be described as the foundation of our character and attitude toward our future. Unfortunately, hope often fades for those suffering from depression or another mental illness. When this happens, it greatly affects both your mental and physical health, often leading to depression and suicidal thoughts.

Every individual can benefit from hope, both mentally and physically. When hope exists in your heart, you have something to look forward to and hold on to. Without hope, our hearts are robbed of joy, optimism, and positive thoughts. In a sense, when we lose hope, we are giving up. Research has proved that specific attitudes are linked with happiness and our mental and physical health. “Your outlook—having a sense of optimism and purpose—seems to be predictive of health outcomes,” says Dr. Laura Kubzansky, professor of social and behavioral sciences at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

Compassion is one of the most imperative attitudes we can possess for mental strength. Compassion offers a strengthened immune system, relieves depression, and can even boost longevity. Compassion is an element of our attitude that fosters sincerity toward others and uplifts everyone around us.

Possessing an attitude of forgiveness is a gift you can give to yourself as well as others. Forgiveness heals. When one carries around a bitter, stubborn heart toward another, it becomes a heavy burden. Unforgiveness of your own mistakes or others can have significant impact on one’s mental and physical health over time.

Courage is another beneficial attitude to our character that musters up many good benefits. While one may think that courage is the opposite of fear, this couldn’t be further from the truth. A brave heart is often a fearful heart. Often times, courage is brought about because of fear. Courage is something that every individual taps into nearly every day of life. Courage brings about strengths we often never knew we had, and helps us to overcome fear. It’s truly an essential component to living.

Kindness is a healing attribute to possess. It not only brings about a sense of peace to your heart, but most importantly, it’s contagious. Just as one sour attitude can ruin a picnic, one act of kindness can create a domino effect and improve the day of dozens of people. There is significant research that suggests that kindness boosts the release of a hormone called oxytocin, which is often referred to as the ‘love hormone’.

Dr. IsHak of Cedars Sinai Medical Center, says studies have also linked random acts of kindness to releasing dopamine, a chemical messenger in the brain that can give us a feeling of euphoria. This feel-good brain chemical is credited with causing what’s known as a “helper’s high.”

In addition to boosting oxytocin and dopamine, being kind can also increase serotonin, a neurotransmitter that helps regulate mood. While kindness is known to increase pleasure, happiness, and lifespan, it is also known to decrease depression, anxiety, stress, and even linked to lowering blood pressure.

Most importantly, hope is associated with many positive outcomes, including greater happiness, better academic achievement and even lowered risk of death. Hope has the ability to move the brain toward recovery, creating an optimistic mood that makes good things happen in your life, as well as others. For example, without hope it would be difficult to express kindness, show courage, possess forgiveness, or exercise compassion. Hope is the foundation for a healthy wellbeing overall.

Depression is often described as losing hope and an impending feeling of a dark cloud hanging over your head. If you’ve lost hope, you may be suffering from depression. The simple presence of hope is such a beautiful thing, but when hope is gone it can be detrimental to your life. Overcoming this horrible state of mind can often be a challenge, as doubt begins to set in and continues to take you down it’s dark path. It’s vital to rebuke this type of mindset and refuse to allow it to take center stage in your life. Loss of hope also brings about loneliness and isolation.

When you begin to feel all these symptoms, it’s important to remember to seek help. We all have ups and downs in life, but loss of hope can be a serious problem that often leads to other undesired symptoms, both mentally and physically. While many may attempt to hide how they feel and refrain from seeking help, others will recognize the impact on their quality of life and will seek help. Those who seek help will prevail.

Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS therapy) is the most advanced form of depression treatment. TMS offers hope to those suffering with depression and other mental health disorder. When antidepressants have been ineffective, TMS is covered by insurance and should be strongly considered. The treatment is known to be highly effective and offers long-term relief, lifting your symptoms of loneliness, isolation, and lack of motivation, and fatigue. More importantly, TMS offers more of a holistic approach to treating your condition in as little as 19-minutes a day without any of the side effects experienced with antidepressant and psychiatric medications.

While there are many other things you can do to bring hope back into your life, such as therapy, counseling, medications, and lifestyle changes, TMS is an option that treats the problem at its source. For more information on TMS therapy, visit TMS Institute of America or give them a call at 1-833-TMS-HELP to schedule a free consultation or let them help to find a TMS clinic near you.

You are encouraged to keep hoping for bright days ahead. Good things come to those who persevere and overcome, and you can too. Make the choice to get the help you need, and enjoy your life full of compassion, kindness, forgiveness, courage, and most of all hope!