Listening to your favorite song in the car, the first afternoon of spring when the sun sets a little after six, the first ice cream of summer, the smell of coffee in the morning, or dopamine, serotonin and endorphins that spread throughout the body after a training session. They are experiences that for some people produce a chemical reaction in the body, as if it were a type of natural painkiller since they relax and calm. That is, it makes them feel happy.
Life accelerated by constant productivity and little rest can cause individuals to have fewer opportunities to enjoy these experiences and, therefore, feel that they are less happy. “We must keep in mind that happiness is not a goal, as many psychological currents would have you think. Happiness is an emotion, we cannot be sad or angry,” explains psychologist Sílvia Vidal, a healthcare expert in anxiety, stress and emotions. In its strict definition and according to the Royal Spanish Academy, happiness is a “state of pleasant spiritual and physical satisfaction.”
Vidal explains that for her it is essential that her patients understand that happiness is an emotion, since it “relieves” them to realize that it is not necessary to be happy constantly and they can take the pressure off themselves. “You are happy in specific moments and we, as people, do not always have the responsibility of being able to be,” Vidal reasons. According to the healthcare provider, there are days when you can connect with happiness and there are other days when you don’t, since stress, worries, tiredness and reluctance can come into play, “and nothing happens if you aren’t,” he points out.
According to a United Nations report from March 2024, the “Annual World Happiness Report”, millennials and centennials, people around the age of thirty on average, are the people who feel the unhappiest. On the other hand, according to a study by Harvard University, published in the book “The Good Life”, people over the age of 60 are happier because they recognize the limits of life and get rid of responsibilities and obligations. .
Meanwhile, new trends appear on social networks that provide a guide to learning how to approach happiness and continue to relate happiness as a vital goal. “Journaling” is the method of writing down and writing feelings and emotions in a notebook in order to digest them better; Manifesting helps spiritually to create the dream life through mantras and positive phrases; and “romanticizing life” means observing the small moments of the day as if they were a movie.
These guides that go viral appeal to personal care and creating healthy habits, which, as Vidal points out, are crucial for emotional well-being. However, the health worker also adds that these habits and lifestyles should be reviewed, to give importance to others “such as breathing to connect with yourself, if you can find ten minutes for yourself,” she suggests. Vidal clarifies that it cannot be generalized either, since the habits that may provide happiness to one person may not to another, and it will depend on the personal circumstances of each person.
There are also other types of habits that have nothing to do with exercising, listening to music, or reading to disconnect from the hectic life and that contribute to having a more joyful and happy life and that do not cause a large amount of time to be diverted from the day, which many times people do not have.
“A habit to develop to be happier is to learn to slow down,” proposes psychologist and writer Rafael Santandreu. According to him, it is important to take each day slowly and never multitask. It is vital to give full attention to every small task at hand. “You can imagine yourself as a monk who does things all day long, but slowly and with all the affection and love in the world,” Santandreu describes. The accelerated pace causes the loss of the ability to appreciate what one has, “and that is essential,” explains the psychologist and author of whose book The Art of Not Making Life Bitter is one of the best-selling books on self-help and emotional well-being.
Another habit that does not imply having to go beyond the hours of the day to dedicate time to it and that Santandreu proposes is to complain as little as possible, “if it is close to zero, the better,” he comments. According to the psychologist, complaint produces bitterness and dissatisfaction and has no limit. He adds that, along with this, moments are included in which humor is introduced. “In your interactions with people at work, with the person you buy bread from, with your partner. Because humor is a great anti-neurosis tool,” explains Santandreu.
Laughing helps you gain distance and perspective and let go of worries. What may seem like a problem, “is actually not that dramatic,” describes the psychologist. In addition to laughing, Santandreu adds relearning how to play on the list of habits to feel happier. “We could invent the word ‘animals toyensis’, because play is super important for human happiness. “We are like playful chimpanzees,” explains the psychologist. He proposes finding time to have fun every day and clarifies that it is wrong to think that adulthood means not playing anymore.
Silvia Vidal suggests that any activity that helps you disconnect from screen addiction and accelerated productivity will be beneficial and will allow you to find that moment of relaxation and anti-stress. “It is very important to be able to connect with ourselves and our emotions, to learn to disconnect to connect,” says Vidal, independently, whether it is by coming into contact with nature, reading a book or listening to music.
Vidal adds that at a time when people are hyperconnected, they are also more disconnected than ever. “We have many more inputs that bother us than other generations had before and our nervous system is constantly activated, so it is very difficult to connect with ourselves,” explains the psychologist and creator of content on stress and anxiety. So she explains that nowadays it is more difficult to find those moments of happiness. The psychologist clarifies that being anchored to work exploitation, stress and social comparison leads to enormous pressure to find moments of happiness and disconnection. “No one told our grandparents that they had to be happy,” Vidal remarks.
