10 Scientific Ways Towards Feeling HAPPY!

1. Practice smiling
A smile is a good way to reduce some of the pain we feel in troubling circumstances. Smiling is one way to reduce the distress caused by an upsetting situation. Psychologists call this the facial feedback hypothesis. Even forcing a smile when we don’t feel like it is enough to lift our mood slightly.

2. Sleep more
We know that sleep helps our body recover from the day and repair itself and that it helps us focus and be more productive. It turns out sleep is also important for happiness. Sleep affects our sensitivity to negative emotions. More sleep blocks and even reverses negative emotional reactivity to anger and fear while conversely enhancing ratings of positive (happy) expressions. Of course, how well (and how long) we sleep will probably affect how we feel when we wake up, which can make a difference to our whole day.

3. Practice gratitude
This seemingly simple strategy can make a huge difference to our outlook. There are lots of ways to practice gratitude, from keeping a journal of things we’re grateful for, sharing three good things that happen each day with a friend or our partner, and going out of our way to show gratitude when others help us

4. Help others – 2 hours each week
Scientists have found that doing a kindness produces the single most reliable momentary increase in well-being of any exercise tested.

5. Exercise
Exercise has such a profound effect on our happiness and well-being that it is an effective strategy for overcoming depression. We don’t have to be depressed to benefit from exercise, though. Exercise can help us relax, increase our brain power, and improve our body image, even if you don’t lose any weight.

6. Go outside
Making time to go outside on a nice day also delivers a huge advantage; one study found that spending 20 minutes outside in good weather not only boosted positive mood, but broadened thinking and improved working memory.

7. Move closer to work
Our commute to work can have a surprisingly powerful impact on our happiness. The fact that we tend to commute twice a day at least five days a week makes it unsurprising that the effect would build up over time and make us less and less happy.

8. Spend time with family and friends
Social time is highly valuable when it comes to improving our happiness, even for introverts. Several studies have found that time spent with friends and family makes a big difference to how happy we feel.

9. Plan a Trip
It helps even if we don’t actually take one As opposed to actually taking a holiday, simply planning a holiday or break away can improve our happiness. A study published in the journal Applied Research in Quality of Life showed that the highest spike in happiness came during the planning stage of a vacation as people enjoy the sense of anticipation.

10. Meditate
Meditation literally clears our mind and calms us down, it’s been often proven to be the single most effective way to live a happier life.

Quick Final Fact:
Getting older will actually make us happier. As we get older, particularly past middle age, we tend to naturally grow happier. There’s still some debate over why this happens, but scientists have a few ideas.

Older people tend to focus on and remember the happier things – As people age, they seek out situations that will lift their moods for instance, pruning social circles of friends or acquaintances who might bring them down. Older adults learn to let go of loss and disappointment over unachieved goals, and focus their goals on greater well being.