8/13/2019 10 Simple Things You Can Do Now That Will Make You Happier

1/1

10 Simple Things You Can Do Now That Will Make You Happier1. Exercise More Often

Exercise is one of the best strategies for overcoming depression. Indeed, it can have a dramatic impact on your mental health. For example, a Duke

University team studied three groups that tried exercise only, exercise plus drugs, and drugs only, to see what treatment best treated depression.

They found that 10 months later, it was the exercise-only group that was most successful in maintaining wellness and avoiding a depression relapse!

Yet, exercise may still make you happier even if youre not depressed. It can he lp you to feel better about your body,2 for starters, while also boosting

levels of health-promoting brain chemicals like serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine, which may help buffer some of the effects of stress.

Rather than viewing exercise as a medical tool to lose weight, prevent disease, and live longer all benefits that occur in the future try viewing

exercise as a daily tool to immediately enhance your frame of mind, reduce stress and feel happier.

2. Get Proper Sleep

A lack of sleep makes it more difficult to recall pleasant memories (but gloomy memories are recalled just fine).3 Lack of sl eep may also make you more

susceptible to negative emotions like fear and anger, while taking a nap in the afternoon may enhance positive emotions.

Not to mention, sleep deprivation is linked to psychiatric disorders, such as anxiety and bipolar depression, while getting the right amount of sleep has

been linked to positive personality characteristics such as optimism and greater self-esteem, as well as a greater ability to solve difficult problems.4

3. Shorten Your Commute

If you can move closer to where you work, or work closer to where you live, do it. A long commute is stressful and draining, even if it allows you to buy a

bigger house or have a better job. Such factors do not make up for the unhappiness created by a longer commute, according to research by two Swiss

economists. Generally speaking, it would take a 40 percent increase in pay to make up for a job with a longer commute.5

4. Nourish Your Relationships

Friends and family mean everything in life, and research shows spending social time with your friends and loved ones generally makes people much

happier. One study even found that relationships are worth more than $100,000 in terms of life satisfaction, while actual changes in income buy very

little happiness.6

5. Spend Time Outdoors

Simply going outside to get some fresh air and sunshine boosts mood, broadens thinking and improves working memory. One study found that it takes

just 20 minutes outdoors to make most people happier, while other research showed that happiness is maximized when its 57 degrees F outside7 so

keep an eye on the thermometer!

6. Help Others

Volunteering can lower your risk of depression and anxiety,8 and significantly boost your psychological well-being.9 Not only does it keep you active

and on your feet, but theres a definite social aspect as well, both of which contribu te to happiness. Volunteering to help others also gives you a greater

sense of purpose and can even lead to a so-called helpers high, which may occur because doing good things releases feel -good hormones like oxytocin

in your body while lowering levels of stress hormones like cortisol.

7. SmilePutting on a fake smile can worsen your mood, but thinking positive thoughts and then smiling as a result can make you happier.When you smile at

others, theyre also more likely to smile back in return, creating an ongoing feedback loop that may lead to more positivity in your life and the lives of

others.

8. Plan a Vacation

It might be that the simple act of planning a vacation can make you happier, even if you dont actually go on one. Research s howed that people were

happiest during the planning stage of their vacation, when their sense of anticipation was peaked.11 After the vacation was over, levels of happiness

quickly returned to baseline.

9. Meditate

Meditation helps you keep your mind focused, calms your nerves and supports inner peace. Research shows it can even lead to physical changes in your

brain that make you happier, including an increase in areas associated with compassion and self-awareness and a shrinking in areas associated with

stress.

10. Practice Gratitude

People who are thankful for what they have are better able to cope with stress, have more positive emotions, and are better able to reach their goals. The

best way to harness the positive power of gratitude is to keep a gratitude journal or list, where you actively write down exactly what youre grateful foreach day. Doing so has been linked to happier moods, greater optimism and even better physical health.