Most of us have a desire to improve our health, sleep more soundly, have more energy and just generally feel better in our daily lives. And yet those things feel elusive to many of us, so we’re always on the hunt for hacks that can help us, and if those hacks don’t require a huge change in lifestyle or herculean feats of willpower, all the better. Thankfully, there’s one small change you can make to your morning routine that can make a big difference in how you feel, think and sleep, and it’s refreshingly simple. The simple morning habit that changes everything In a nutshell: Go outside and face the sun. More specifically, go outside as soon as possible after waking, but definitely within the hour, and look toward the sun for 2 to 10 minutes if it’s a bright, sunny day and a little longer on a cloudy one. Most of us know we get vitamin D from sun exposure on our skin, but that’s really not what getting morning sunlight is about. It’s about the sun’s light energy hitting our eyes. As Dr. Andrew Huberman, associate professor of neurobiology and ophthalmology at Stanford University School of Medicine, explains, “This is not some ‘woo’ biological thing. This is grounded in the core of our physiology. There are literally hundreds if not thousands of quality peer-reviewed papers showing that light viewing early in the day is the most powerful stimulus for wakefulness throughout the day and it has a powerful positive impact on your ability to fall and stay asleep at night.” Huberman calls it a “power tool” for getting a great night’s sleep and lists it as one of the six pillars people should invest in every day—morning sunlight, daily movement, quality nutrition, stress control, healthy relationships and deep sleep. Take care of yourself and take care of others. Daily investment in the 6 pillars is the way: morning sunlight, daily movement, quality nutrition, stress control, healthy relationships, deep sleep. Re-up every 24hrs so you can contribute and support others consistently too.— Andrew D. Huberman, Ph.D. (@hubermanlab) October 23, 2023 While the advice to look toward the sun flies in the face of all the times we’ve been warned not to look at the sun, in the early morning, the sun is less intense and you don’t need to look directly at it to get the benefits of its light rays. The photons still enter your eyes through indirect light, triggering the cortisol spike that sets your circadian rhythm in order. A woman faces the warm sun. Photo credit: Canva Why sunlight is so important “Getting sunlight in your eyes first thing in the morning is absolutely vital to mental and physical health,” Huberman says. “It is perhaps the most important thing that any and all of us can and should do in order to promote metabolic well-being, promote the positive functioning of your hormone system, get your mental health steering in the right direction.” And you can also see Dr. Huberman go a lot more in depth about the benefits of sunlight and light therapies of all kinds here. This article originally appeared two years ago. It has been updated. The post One simple shift in your morning routine can improve your sleep and energize you all day appeared first on Upworthy.

Anna Mellor is a popular TikTokker best known for making videos where she pranks her husband, Rory. In one hit video, she forces him to dress as Mrs. Claus for the family Christmas card. In another, they plan a romantic movie night and she pretends to fall asleep just as Rory’s entering the room with popcorn. Basically, they’re couple goals and it’s extremely obvious to anyone watching that they are best friends, even soulmates, despite the lumps Rory takes along the way. But poor Rory may have got the last laugh after a secretive long-con he played left her stupefied. The secret? He’s been leaving her love letters in her shoes for years. The six-year secret hidden inside her shoes Anna took to TikTok to share the tale with her near one million followers. “I just discovered a six-year secret my husband has been keeping from me,” Mellor captioned a post with the big reveal. The video has over 2.6 million views since it was posted in March, 2022. Anna got hip to her husband’s secret joke after she purchased a pair of used Fila shoes and found a secret message written in black Sharpie on the inside: “I Fila lot better when ur around.” (A love letter and a dad joke, to boot. We love to see it.) @mellorlite Me thinking it was a love letter for someone else has same energy as when Rory was proposing and I thought the ring was somebody else’s that got lost at the beach ♬ You – Petit Biscuit After making the discovery, she called her husband to tell him the strange news. “I was like, ‘I just found a love letter in my shoes,’” she explained. Rory acted confused to hear the news. “He’s like, ‘Are you being serious?’ Acting as if I should know what’s going on,” Anna said. But he couldn’t keep up the charade for long. “We have been married for six years. I have been writing in your shoes for six years and you just noticed for the first time” he admitted. Anna then opened up another sneaker that had “If your feet get tired I will carry you” written on the tongue. It makes you wonder how many pairs of shoes that she’s thrown out had secret messages in them? Anna was clearly shocked by the revelation and thought it was a wonderfully creative way for her husband to show his love. It also shows that the man has an incredible talent at keeping a secret. Not to mention the outstanding patience on display! Commenters on the video thought that Rory is definitely a keeper, with all the makings of an all-star husband and dad. “Immediately getting a divorce… none of my shoes say stuff!” TheMrsGarcia1111 wrote. “Where did you find him and how do I get one…asking for a friend,” Keelyn added. “Ughhh *getting up to take my shoes to my husband and start and argument*” another user joked. “It’s so much sweeter that he kept doing it even though you never praised him for it” added another. This isn’t even their first viral moment This isn’t the first time the couple has gone viral. Back in 2020, Anna posted a video on TikTok where she sent her husband a dirty text message, but it was intercepted by her mother-in-law. In the video, a horrified Anna can be heard saying, “Wait, wait, no… oh no” as she watches Rory’s mother reaching for the phone. “Did you read that?” Rory asks after taking a look for himself. “I thought it was my phone,” she responds. “That is so gross!” Talk about embarrassing. But, mostly, viewers love the pranks. They can’t get enough of the pranks. @mellorlite What was he dreaming about?!?!? #sleepprank #fellasleep #prankingmyhusband ♬ original sound – Anna Mellor Why humor and small gestures matter so much in a relationship Research shows that good-natured ribbing, like the type that Anna and Rory share in their videos, is great for a couple. A meta-analysis of 39 studies found that couples who “create humor together” through inside jokes are more likely to last than those that don’t. “People say they want a sense of humor in a mate, but that’s a broad concept,” Professor Jeffrey Hall from the University of Kansas said according to The Daily Mail. “What is strongly related to relationship satisfaction is the humor that couples create together.” And little love notes and other small displays of affection? They’re key in a happy marriage. They seem small and maybe even silly, but they communicate a lot: Commitment, effort, and love. Anna and Rory are such an inspirational couple because beyond even love, it’s so obvious that they like each other. That’s a highly underrated aspect of a great relationship. If you’re trying to inject a little more of this playful fun in your own relationship, well, shoes might be a good place to start. This article originally appeared four years ago. It has been updated. The post Woman discovers her husband’s been leaving love notes in her shoes for over six years appeared first on Upworthy.

The prevailing logic in today’s political world is that polarization is worsening because people live in media echo chambers where they are only exposed to outlets that mirror their views. People who live in echo chambers come to distrust any opinions outside their bubbles, especially when they’re not exposed to conflicting information. This creates a scenario where the person becomes increasingly entrenched in their worldview. One would assume that after a person becomes fully entrenched in an echo chamber, they have little chance of changing their views. However, a new working paper by researchers at UC Berkley and Yale universities has found that when people are removed from their bubbles, there’s a chance they’ll change their minds. What happened when Fox News viewers watched CNN for a month David Broockman of UC Berkeley and Joshua Kalla of Yale conducted a study in fall 2020, publishing their findings in 2022, in which they paid regular Fox News viewers $15 an hour to watch CNN for around seven hours a week for a month. The researchers then surveyed them about their political beliefs and knowledge of current events. The study is titled “The manifold effects of partisan media on viewers’ beliefs and attitudes: A field experiment with Fox News viewers.” It was conducted in fall 2020, during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic and the lead-up to the presidential election. When the participants were polled, researchers found that they were five percentage points more likely to believe that people suffer from long COVID, 6 points more likely to think that other countries did a better job of controlling the virus, and 7 points more likely to support voting by mail. Anderson Cooper and David Axelrod speaking in the spin room following the CNN Republican Presidential Debate at the Olmsted Center at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa. via Gage Skidmore/Wikimedia Commons “CNN provided extensive coverage of COVID-19, which included information about the severity of the COVID-19 crisis and poor aspects of Trump’s performance handling COVID-19. Fox News covered COVID-19 much less,” said the study. How their views on Trump and police changed After Fox viewers switched to CNN, their opinions on the social justice protests happening at the time changed. The switchers were 10 points less likely to think that Biden supporters were happy when police got shot and 13 points less likely to believe that if Biden gets elected, “we’ll see many more police get shot by Black Lives Matter activists.” Many of the participants also realized that when it came to Trump, they weren’t getting the whole story. After switching to a steady diet of CNN they were less likely to agree that “if Donald Trump did something bad, Fox News would discuss it.” “Despite regular Fox viewers being largely strong partisans, we found manifold effects of changing the slant of their media diets on their factual beliefs, attitudes, perceptions of issues’ importance, and overall political views,” the authors of the study said. A Fox News van in New York City via Wikimedia Commons What the study means for political polarization in America The study shows that Fox News isn’t just a media outlet that affirms its viewers’ worldviews; it also feeds them a distorted version of reality that pushes them toward more extreme opinions. The good news is that some of these people can be changed when exposed to better information. It should also be noted that Fox News viewers aren’t the only ones living in information bubbles and that there are plenty of ideological traps that ensnare people on the left as well. “Partisan media aren’t just putting a thumb on the scale for their side,” Broockman said. “They’re also hiding information that voters need to hold politicians accountable. That’s not just good for their side and bad for the other side — it’s bad for democracy, and for all of us.” Two months after the study, it was found that the Fox News viewers reverted to their opinions before their exposure to CNN. Still, Broockman believes that the study offers some hope in a time of deep political polarization. “Even among the most orthodox partisans and partisan media viewers,” he said, according to Berkeley, “those who receive a sustained diet of information that helps them see the bigger picture actually are open-minded enough to understand that their side isn’t doing a perfect job, either.” The study should give everyone hope that all is not lost and that America’s political divide may not be impossible to bridge. This article originally appeared four years ago. It has been updated. The post Fox News viewers were paid to watch CNN and it actually changed their views appeared first on Upworthy.

Some people enjoy small talk and are naturally good at it. For others, it feels like mental and emotional torture. There are many reasons why people are nervous about entering social situations where they have to make small talk, such as a work event, a party where they don’t know many people, or at school. Some people don’t enjoy small talk because they get frustrated talking about seemingly unimportant topics. At the same time, others are shy and afraid they’ll say the wrong thing or run out of topics of conversation. Psychologists suggest those who are uncomfortable knowing what to say should use the FORD method of conversation starters. It’s an acronym that’s an easy way to remember four different topics of conversation that work with just about anyone. According to Nicole Arzt, M.S., L.M.F.T at Social Self, the FORD acronym stands for Family, Occupation, Recreation and Dreams. Here are some examples of questions that fall under each category. Family Just about everyone has a family, so it’s a great way to ask someone to share some information about their personal lives without being too forward. Arzt suggests the following questions when making small talk: You can ask people about their parents, kids, siblings, grandparents, cousins, aunts and uncles, or just family in general. Photo credit: Canva Do you have any siblings? How did you two meet? (if you are meeting a couple for the first time) How old is your child? How is your____ (sister, brother, mother, etc.) doing since ____ (event that happened?) Occupation Just like a family, almost everyone has a job. Or, if they do not, that can be an interesting topic as well. Here are some starter questions you can ask someone about their job. You can take questions about someone’s occupation beyond simply, Photo credit: Canva What do you do for a living? How do you like working at _____? What’s your favorite part of your job? What made you interested in becoming a _____? Recreation You can learn a lot about a person after knowing how they spend their free time. It’s also an excellent way to determine if someone is like-minded and shares the same interests. Here are some questions to get the ball rolling. It is fun to talk about, well…fun. Photo credit: Canva What do you like to do for fun? Have you watched (or read) ______(popular show/book)? What are you up to this weekend? Dreams Learning someone’s hope for the future can tell you much about who they are on a deeper level. They may have just told you about their current job or how they spend their time. But, ultimately, what do they wish to do with their lives? Here’s how to ask someone about their dreams. Everyone has hopes and dreams. Photo credit: Canva Where do you hope to be working in the next few years? Where would you like to travel? What’s something you’d like to try in the future? Would you ever consider trying _____ (particular hobby or activity)? Don’t just ask questions, share your own answers Arzt also notes that you shouldn’t just be an interviewer. You have to talk about yourself, too. In other words, you need a mutual give-and-take. “Pay attention to someone else’s answers and think about how you can draw from your own experience to connect,” she wrote. When you’re feeling socially anxious, it can be hard to listen to the other person while also thinking about your own responses, so thinking of the FORD acronym for yourself and having something to share in each category ahead of time can be a way to avoid the dreaded awkward silence that sometimes happens during small talk. It can also be tricky to know how much you should be talking vs. how much you should be listening. If you’re not sure how much to say during a conversation, follow the 43:57 rule. A numbers guy at Gong.io analyzed over 25,000 sales calls with AI and found the perfect speaking-to-listening ratio. Sales soared when the salesperson talked 43% of the time and listened for 57%. Even though this insight is from business calls, it applies to everyday social interactions. It’s really about listening and making the other person feel special. After all, who doesn’t love feeling heard and appreciated? Small talk doesn’t have to be torturous, even if it’s something you don’t look forward to. With a little preparation and some genuine curiosity, it might even become enjoyable as you make new connections with people. This article originally appeared three years ago. It has been updated. The post If you struggle with small talk, a simple acronym can make it a lot less painful appeared first on Upworthy.

Death: It’s hard to talk about, and sadly, even harder to avoid. That’s why everyone wants to know how long they will live and there are many indicators that can show whether someone is thriving or on the decline. But scientists have yet to develop a magic formula to determine exactly how long someone should expect to live. Which, let’s be real, is probably a good thing. Knowing exactly how much time you have left to enjoy your life could cause a lot of anxiety, to say the very least. NBC News medical contributor Dr. Natalie Azar appeared on the TODAY show on March 8, 2023, to demonstrate a surprisingly simple test that may predict how long someone aged 51 to 80 has to live. The test is called the sit to stand test, also known as the sit-rising test or SRT, and it takes less than a minute to perform. How to take the sit to stand test The test is pretty simple. Go from standing to sitting cross-legged, and then go back to standing without using any parts of your body besides your legs and core to help you get up and down. The test measures multiple longevity factors, including heart health, balance, agility, core and leg strength and flexibility. You begin the test with a score of 10 and subtract points on your way up and down for doing the following: Hand used for support: -1 point Knee used for support: -1 point Forearm used for support: -1 point One hand on knee or thigh: -1 point Side of leg used for support: -1 point Two studies, 13 years apart, came to the same conclusion A 2012 study published by the European Society of Cardiology found a correlation between the SRT score and how long people live. A follow-up study published in 2025 in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology further confirmed the SRT as a strong predictor of both natural and cardiovascular causes of death, reinforcing the original findings. The study was conducted on 2002 people, 68% of whom were men, who performed the SRT test and were followed by researchers in the coming years. The study found that “Musculoskeletal fitness, as assessed by SRT, was a significant predictor of mortality in 51–80-year-old subjects.” Those who scored in the lowest range, 0 to 3, had up to a 6 times greater chance of dying than those in the highest scores (8 to 10). About 40% of those in the 0 to 3 range died within 11 years of the study. What does your score actually mean? Azar distilled the study on TODAY saying: “The study found that the lower the score, you were seven times more likely to die in the next six years.” “Eight points or higher is what you want,” Azar said. “As we get older, we spend time talking cardiovascular health and aerobic fitness, but balance, flexibility and agility are also really important,” she stressed. A score of eight or nine means you’re allowed to roll forward onto your knees and then rise, which a lot of people will find more comfortable. If you can rise that way, you’re still in a pretty good spot health wise. One should note that the people who scored lowest on the test were the oldest, giving them a naturally elevated risk of death. Dr. Greg Hartley, Board Certified Geriatric Clinical Specialist and associate professor at the University of Miami, told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that we should take the study with a grain of salt. “Frailty, strength, muscle mass, physical performance: those things are all correlated to mortality, but I would caution everybody that correlation doesn’t mean causation,” he said. And of course, the test doesn’t take into account injuries or disabilities that may make doing the test impossible. But one of the study’s authors says that the study is a call to take our mobility seriously. “The more active we are the better we can accommodate stressors, the more likely we are to handle something bad that happens down the road,” Dr. Claudio Gil Araujo, told USA Today. Even low-impact exercise like yoga can increase your mobility and flexibility and, thus, your SRT score. Photo credit: Canva What to do if your score is low What should you do if you can’t manage a good score on the SRT? First of all, don’t panic! It’s never too late to improve your overall health, fitness, and strength, so regular exercise is a great thing to incorporate if you’re not already doing it. A couple of specific skills that will help are boosting your ankle flexibility, hip mobility, and core strength. Trainers recommend incorporating squats, lunges, and planks into your regular routine. Just using your own bodyweight is plenty to get started, though if you’re up for incorporating any added loads, the strength training will do wonders for your bone density, as well. But remember that the SRT is just a measure of strength and mobility, which could correlate to an older person’s likelihood of suffering from a fatal fall. It doesn’t do anything to measure your cardiovascular health (vitally important especially in older people), for example. And it may not even be the most reliable longevity test out there. It has been criticized for its extremely unnatural range of motion. For starters, rising by pushing up on the sides of our ankles with our knees pointed outward is certainly not representative of a real-life situation. Some doctors insist that your comfortable walking speed is a better indicator of health and longevity, while others say grip strength is the key measurement. Remember, it is never too late to start healthy routines for a better quality of life. This article originally appeared three years ago. It has been updated. The post Doctor explains how to accurately predict your longevity with simple at-home test appeared first on Upworthy.