Happiness--Roze

 

The word happiness is one of those words that have more than one meaning. Happiness

can be a person, a place, or a thing. What is happiness? An enduring state of mind consisting not

only of feelings of joy, contentment, and other positive emotions, but also of a sense that one's

life is meaningful and valued. We are happy when we do what we love, as well as when we are

surrounded by the people that bring us safety and joy. Surrounding ourselves with what brings us

delight is a crucial part of humanity. Without that content state of mind, your brain will start

shrinking over time. The shrinkage ultimately reduces your brain volume and it loses any

motivation to do our daily tasks. On the contrary, having joy increases your brain activity and

dopamine levels in the brain. When the dopamine levels are released into the brain, it has

positive effects on our memory as well as our brain's ability to learn. The chemicals increase the

brain's capacity to increase memory and reduce anxiety/depression. It is a proven fact, after a

study, those who are happy with themselves have higher test scores and are able to focus on tasks

much better than those who are unhappy.

I was laying in bed on a day I had made plans with some friends and did not feel like

getting up to go. The idea of just staying home and doing nothing all day sounded more

appealing to me than having to get ready and go out. Staying in bed makes me lose all my

motivation in doing my daily tasks. I find when I just sit at home, I tend to do nothing. When I

actually get up and get in the right mindset, “get stuff done” I find that I am able to do so much

more, like clean my room and do my homework. I recently discovered the fact that my grades

have been improving as I get in the right state of mind and do my schoolwork at a designated

spot that is not my bed. Studying in bed brings the lazy thoughts into my head because my brain

is used to that spot as being a calming spot. Having an open mindset is crucial to being happy. I

wake up in the morning dreading going to school and not wanting to do it. That lifestyle became

sad because there was nothing I would look forward to and instead of making the days count, I

was only counting the days. Day by day, I started changing my habits, and rather than waking up

with nothing to look forward to, I started making things to look forward to. Having the thoughts

as to where “ today is going to be a good day” alone can really increase your brain activity into

taking advantage of the day rather than just simply making it go by. I started getting up in the

morning and making plans for myself in order to make my day productive. Having that happy

positive mindset helps me find joy in daily tasks like cleaning my room and the calm feeling that

comes with it when it's all done. Running errands is now something to look forward to as I make

something out of it rather than treat it as unmoving and dull. Having a happy mindset changed

my lifestyle for the better in ways that only I was able to make. It always starts with you.

Happiness & Health: The Biological Factors- Systematic ...

National Institutes of Health (.gov)

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov › articles › PMC4449495

https://www.britannica.com/topic/happiness