Day 8 here we come!

Have your ever wondered what in fact makes you happy? It’s human nature to want to be happy, but people know relatively little about the science behind the emotion.

Ok, so these 4 point help feel happy, but how can we put it into practice? Well, emotions are complicated, but they are ours to understand and own. Rather than being at the mercy of our feelings, we can be aware of them and remind ourselves of our power to influence how we see things and react. Here are  6 tips that we’ve learned through our own mindfulness practice:

  1. Practice gratitude
  2. Enhance your social connections: “Good relationships actually keep our bodies healthier and help us live longer.”  –Robert Waldinger, director of the Harvard Study of Adult Development
  3. Exercise: when we exercise, it increases endorphins, dopamine, adrenaline and endocannabinoid, look familiar from the list about?
  4. Practice mindfulness: Just like exercising your body, meditation exercises your mind and teaches your brain to focus on the present rather of the past or future. “The idea is to be present — don’t judge your emotions, but recognize them” -Elizabeth Dunn,  psychology professor at the University of British Columbia.
  5. Smile often: a smile can actually stimulate a chemical reaction in the brain, releasing certain hormones including dopamine and serotonin.
  6. Eat chocolate: isn’t that the same thing as happiness 🙂 Chocolate (or specifically the cocoa plant), has  different chemicals that produce a positive feeling in your body and mind.

 

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