New Neuroscience Reveals 5 Rituals That Will Make You Happy - Barking Up The Wrong Tree

Doing little positive things is better for happiness than occasionally bagging an elephant:

• Enjoyable stuff
• Achievement stuff: Defeat your goals in single combat and feel like a conquering hero
• Meaningful stuff: Do volunteer work or just help someone
• Physical stuff: Exercise. Not only keeps you alive, but it’s like miracle grow for your brain
• Social stuff.

If you want to keep your brain happy, be clear on who your support network is. Know who matters and nurture those relationships.

The best thing to do is to talk with the person in real life or meet up for an activity. The next best thing is talking on the phone, which is better than texts or emails. Seeing someone and hearing their voice activates your mirror neuron system in ways that texting can’t match.

Some questions to help you:

• “Who appreciates you or thinks highly of you, whether or not you agree with them?”
• “Who is there to help you out if needed?”
• “Who can you call, text or visit for emotional support?”
• “Who is good with giving you advice or helping you make decisions?”
• “Who do you like spending time with?”
• “Who can you do activities with?”

Beating yourself up won’t make you better. Instead of self-criticism, try self-reassurance.

When you’re trying to quit bad habits you often get critical with yourself which leads to bad feelings that make you cave and go back to your old ways. And self-criticism can also easily lead to bad moods.

You don’t need to buy anything or do anything to feel happier. You just need to appreciate what you already have.

Gratitude can decrease depression symptoms as well as stress in general and leads to increased perception of social support. It improves self-esteem and psychological well-being.

Importantly, gratitude has the power to activate the dopamine system.