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9 Simple Tips to Keep Your Mood Up (Even When Everything Goes Wrong)

Get A Furry Friend

Owning and caring for a pet will boost your mood and give you a good feeling and happiness.

If you can't own a pet, volunteer at your local shelter to get a dose of puppy love.

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45 Ways To Be Happier Instantly

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Sometimes it can feel hard to keep up a happy state of mind. The emotion, like all the others, isn't always permanent. But there are ways to keep it up or boost it when you need it ― and luckily, they're simpler than you think.

Key Ideas

Spend time with furry friends

Play fetch with Fido or sneak in a few cuddles with your kitten.

Interacting with your pets can release oxytocin in the brain ― you know, the “warm and fuzzy” hormone ― resulting...

Count your blessings

There’s nothing like a little thankfulness to boost your mood. Research shows expressing gratitude can make you happier.

Try writing down three things you’re thankful for at the end of each night.

Remind yourself how great you are

Studies show self-acceptance is crucial to a happier life, but it’s a habit we barely practice.

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Here are 11 ways you can increase dopamine levels in the brain without medication

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Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that affects your mood, focus, energy, and behaviour. What's the key to happiness? Some of your friends might say it's healthy relationships or doing a job you love. Spiritual gurus might say it's living in the moment or positive thinking. But isn't it more interesting to find out what neuroscientists say?

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Dopamine Explained

We all seek happiness, and there is a scientific way we can find it.

Dopamine, the feel-good chemical in our brains, positively affects our mood, focus, energy and behaviour.

Happiness Centre: Dopamine

Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that controls our brain's reward and pleasure centre. It can help us:

Lose Weight
Fight against Depression
Be Motivated
Improve our Memory
Feel Happy
Stay mentally strong
Reduce bad habits
Increase Feelings of contentment

How Dopamine Works

The body and mind seek pleasureable experiences, resulting in the neurons creating dopamine in our brain. This can be also overdone using drugs, leaving a negative impact eventually.

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

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Before we commence with the festivities, I wanted to thank everyone for helping my first book become a Wall Street Journal bestseller. To check it out, click here. *** You want to be happy. Unfortunately, your brain is not always in a cooperating kind of mood. What gives?

Key Ideas

Challenge Unhelpful Thoughts

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Listen to your thoughts — but don’t necessarily believe them.

They're suggestions, possibilities. But they’re not gospel. You can’t control what thoughts pop up, but y...

Identifying Unhelpful Thoughts

Black and White Thinking: There are heaping piles of nuance to most things.
Unrealistic Expectations: Cynicism is bad, but a little skepticism is essential.
Selective Attention: If your brain is always looking for the negative, you’re gonna find it.
Disqualifying the Positive: Sometimes we go into problem-solving mode and focus only on what is broken.
Predicting the Future: “This will never work” or “They’re going to think I’m stupid.” You don’t know the future. So don’t act like it.
“Should” thoughts: It’s usually just an insistence that the world bends to your will and is a great way to amplify frustration.

Do More Stuff

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.

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