How to Be Happy [10 Ways to Feel Happier]
Kevin Phelps • May 28, 2021
Happiness looks different for everyone. For some, it could be being comfortable with who they are, while others attribute happiness to financial stability or job success. For many, happiness is about the little things: a good book, a delicious meal, or a beautiful view.
But if you’ve asked yourself numerous times how to be happy in life, you’re not alone. According to Forbes, that question yields more than 6 billion search results on Google. If you’re looking for ways to feel happier in life, check out these 10 tips below.
- Express gratitude: Practicing gratitude is one of the first steps in how to be happy. By focusing on what you have rather than what you don’t, your mindset becomes more positive, and you’re more thankful for the joy you do experience.
- Recognize your strengths: Spending all your energy focusing on your weaknesses or shortcomings won’t make you happy. Instead, focus on your strengths and let them lead you to new opportunities. You’ll feel less frustrated, more accomplished, and less stressed.
- Look for the good: Almost every book on feeling happy talks about the power of positive thoughts. Train your brain to search for the positive things or the silver linings in your circumstances. Doing so will help to decrease depression, frustration, and stress.
- Be kind: Life can be stressful and overwhelming at times, but there’s always time to be kind. Strive to be respectful and empathetic with everyone and show a little bit of kindness whenever you can.
- Exercise: The volume of scientific studies on how exercise helps you feel happier is astounding. It’s a scientific fact that exercise releases endorphins that increase happiness, relieve stress, and improve mental health.
- Declutter: Clutter in both your home and your brain are huge roadblocks to happiness. Take some time to declutter your personal space—get rid of anything you don’t need or that doesn’t bring you happiness. Then surround yourself with things that make you feel happy, organized, and put together.
- Find your purpose: We all want to feel like we’re making a difference in this world, but knowing exactly what type of impact we want to have can be overwhelming. However, taking the time to figure out what gives you a sense of purpose and accomplishment fills your life with greater meaning. Plus, it helps you feel happier and more fulfilled in life.
- Stop comparing: Comparison is a normal human reaction, but it usually does more harm than good. Whenever you’re comparing your finances, job title, education, clothing, physique, or talents, you’re robbing yourself of happiness. The good news is you can reclaim your happiness simply by not comparing yourself to others. Appreciate yourself for who you are, be grateful for the talents you have, and strive to live your best life every day.
- Make positive memories: Our brains are really good at remembering and focusing on bad memories but, with a little bit of practice, we can change that. Take the time to make positive memories. Go out with friends. Enjoy nature. Spend time with family. Filling your mind with uplifting experiences and memories can help to dispel the bad memories.
- Find clarity: One of the first steps to feeling happy is understanding why you’re feeling the way you are. Figure out what’s causing those negative emotions and work to change them. You may need to seek the help of a professional to help you find this emotional clarity.
If you’re struggling to feel happy in your life, contact TMS Clinics of Canada. Our warm and well-trained staff are committed to helping you take the steps to live a happier, more fulfilled life. Get started by taking our free assessment today!
Click here to take our self assessment test or request a complimentary consultation today by clicking here.
If you suffer from anxiety, it’s likely that there are certain things that will trigger your anxiety. This can include things that lead to anxiety attacks or simply make you feel anxious. For your own benefit, it’s helpful to identify these triggers. Keep a Journal One of the best ways to identify triggers is to look at patterns in your life. Keeping a journal can help you see these patterns. In your journal, you can write about your day overall or you can get more specific. You can talk about things during the day that made you anxious or events that made you uncomfortable. It is helpful to maintain your journal over an extended period of time. This will give you plenty to look back on when you want to identify your triggers. A journal is also helpful so you don’t forget what happens each day. It can be hard to identify patterns and triggers if you don’t remember everything you’ve done and experienced. Identify Major Stressors Anxiety can often be brought on by major stressors in your life. Typically, these will be fairly obvious but sometimes you may need to think about your life to determine what is affecting you. Examples of major stressors can include moving, separation, death in the family, or any other type of trauma. Your anxiety may also be manifesting if you have a stressful work, school, or home environment or if you experience a great deal of pressure. Take some time to determine what stressors exist in your life. Knowing what causes your anxiety can help you find ways to work around or through your stressors. Seek Outside Perspectives Sometimes you can’t identify your triggers all on your own. It can be helpful to talk to other people and gain their perspective as well. You can start off by talking to family and friends who know you well. They might have some insight on what they think affects you. Sometimes, the people close to you can observe what makes you anxious when you don’t. In addition to talking to loved ones, you can also talk with a therapist. A therapist is trained to help you work through mental health struggles. They can guide your conversation to help you find what your anxiety triggers may be. To improve your mental health, you need to understand your condition and how it affects you specifically. Identifying your anxiety triggers is an excellent first step. When you know what triggers your anxiety, you can find ways to work through it and seek out helpful treatments. As you look for helpful treatments, consider looking into TMS Therapy .
Whether you suffer from a mental illness, such as depression or anxiety, or you’re simply working through a low point in your mental health, there are habits you can form to help. Establishing healthy habits is a great approach to try before other treatments or medications or even in tandem with other treatments. These healthy habits will benefit your mental health and your body as a whole. Prioritize Quality Sleep Due to busy schedules and the demands of life, sleep is often the first thing to be sacrificed. However, getting enough sleep and getting high quality sleep can greatly improve your mental health. During sleep, your body processes the day and it recuperates. It is also the time when many important processes in the body take place. Cutting back on sleep reduces all its positive benefits. To improve your mental health, you should make sure you are getting 7-9 hours of sleep each night. You also need to be mindful of the quality of your sleep. To get better sleep, try establishing a nightly routine. This helps signal your body that it's time to sleep. Exercising during the day and getting exposure to sunlight early on can make it easier for you to fall asleep at night. Eat a Balanced Diet The foods you eat play a major role in your overall health. Everything you eat provides fuel for your body, so you need to make sure you are giving yourself the right fuel. For the sake of your mental health, you want to eat a balanced diet. This means you should be eating fruits, vegetables, grains, protein, etc. every single day. With a more balanced diet, you can make sure you are getting all the essential nutrients. All the food you eat will contain certain vitamins and minerals that can help your body as a whole, but they can also specifically impact your mental health. Make Time for Exercise It’s no secret that exercise is good for both your physical and mental health. When you exercise, your brain releases chemicals, called endorphins, that make you feel happy. Additionally, exercise can help you feel more energized and it can boost your body image and make you feel more productive. It’s important that you find ways to make time for exercise. Even 30 minutes a day can make a positive impact on your mental health. You can fit in a walk, incorporate exercise into your daily routine, or do a workout at home. Find ways to make it easy for you to get your body moving every day. Establishing healthy habits can help you improve your mental health. This can be especially beneficial if you have depression, anxiety, or any other kind of mental illness. These habits can set you on the right track as you explore other treatments. In addition to these habits, learn more about helpful treatments such as TMS therapy .
Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) therapy is often used as a treatment for depression. This noninvasive therapy stimulates the brain cells in order to promote positive changes for depression patients. However, TMS can also be beneficial for other disorders and ailments. Anxiety One of the other most common disorders that can be treated with TMS therapy is anxiety. Individuals with anxiety may experience an increased heartbeat, rapid breathing, feelings of nervousness, and trembling. In many cases, anxiety is associated with depression. There may be a comorbidity or the anxiety may be a result of depression. TMS therapy can treat depression which in turn eases the anxiety symptoms. However, further research has found that TMS therapy can be beneficial as a treatment for anxiety alone. With anxiety, there is usually an increase in cell activity within the brain. TMS therapy can help decrease this activity so you can feel relief from anxiety. Of course, if you are experiencing depression and anxiety, you can still receive treatment for them together. OCD Obsessive compulsive disorder or OCD is a condition where an individual is highly concerned with order, cleanliness, or control. The symptoms vary from person to person and can impact you throughout life. Much like anxiety, OCD is associated with increased cell activity within the brain. TMS therapy can help to slow this activity and improve symptoms. Much like depression, TMS therapy is recommended to individuals with OCD who have not responded to medication or other treatments. Often, it is used to help those who have not seen any significant improvements through other means. PTSD Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is often the result of experiencing or witnessing a traumatic event. Those who have PTSD may experience flashbacks of the event brought on by certain triggers. PTSD can last months to years and it varies between individuals. TMS therapy is helpful because it focuses on the prefrontal cortex in the brain. This is the area where you process fear. By targeting this area, TMS therapy can help ease the symptoms of PTSD. It also works well when paired with cognitive processing therapy. TMS therapy is sustained therapy aimed at helping you improve your mental health. While it is primarily targeted at treating depression, it can be used to treat other disorders as well. It may be worth your time to see how it may help you. Discover if TMS is right for you !
If you are experiencing depression, it’s important to find ways to treat your condition or to lessen the burden of your symptoms. While there are many treatments available, you can also ease the symptoms of depression through natural means. The added benefit is these methods will also positively impact your health as a whole. Get More Sleep One issue that goes along with depression is insomnia or simply trouble falling asleep. Unfortunately, a lack of sleep can also be a contributing factor to depression. It may be difficult, but you need to make sure you are getting more sleep and improving your sleep quality. When you sleep, your body repairs itself and processes everything from your day. This time is vital to your immune system and your mental health. In order to improve your sleep, consider creating a nightly routine that will signal your body that it’s time to sleep. Make sure your room is cold, dark, and quiet and avoid using your phone before bed as the blue light stimulates your brain. If you struggle to fall asleep, you may be aided by taking a melatonin supplement. Make Time to Exercise Many people struggle with fitting exercise into their day. However, it’s important to try to fit it in. Exercise is highly beneficial to your mental health for many reasons, but the biggest benefit is the endorphins your body releases during exercise. Endorphins are hormones in your brain that are often known as the “feel good hormone.” When your body releases endorphins, it can relieve pain and make you feel happy. Exercise is also a great way to help improve your body image and self-esteem which also contributes to addressing your depression. Not to mention, exercise benefits your body as a whole and it can help you to function better. Prioritize a Nutritious Diet As people say, you are what you eat. In other words, your diet has a major impact on your body and this extends to your mental health. To alleviate your depressive symptoms, you need to prioritize getting all the necessary nutrients. For example, Vitamin D is a powerful nutrient that helps address symptoms of depression. Vitamin D comes from the sun, but it can also be found in many foods like oily fish, eggs, and fortified dairy products. Your diet should also contain antioxidants, selenium, and Omega-3 fatty acids. Although depression is a mental condition, your physical health will still have an effect. Taking care of your physical needs can help you ease your depression symptoms while also benefiting your entire body. Making an effort to improve these areas of your health can make a difference. Taking time to understand depression can help you on your mental health journey!
Seasonal depression, or seasonal affective disorder, is a condition where people experience symptoms of depression at the same time every year. Typically, they feel depressed during the winter months when there is less sunlight. There are many unique ways you can manage seasonal depression. Light Therapy Since seasonal depression is linked to a decrease in sunlight exposure, light therapy is a commonly used treatment. You can purchase a light box that you can sit or work in front of. This box mimics the light from the sun and it is used to help boost your mood and energy levels. Light therapy works best with time and consistency. It can be started in fall when the days are more cloudy and you can continue it until spring. If there are more cloudy days throughout the year, it can also be helpful then. When using light therapy, you need to make sure the light can enter your eyes but don’t stare directly at it. The light will also not be effective just by exposing your skin to the light. Increase Vitamin D Often, individuals with depression also have a deficiency of vitamin D. This essential vitamin is absorbed when exposed to sunlight and has even been called the sunlight vitamin. Without sun exposure, it’s common to have a deficiency of vitamin D. Often, individuals with depression also have a vitamin D deficiency. Vitamin D has been shown to help regulate your mood among many other wonderful benefits. If you are suffering from seasonal depression, then getting more vitamin D in your diet can help. Good sources include many fish such as salmon as well as fortified foods like milk and orange juice. Taking a vitamin D supplement is also an option. Establish Healthy Habits Another great way to help manage seasonal depression is to establish a solid routine and some healthy habits. Having a routine/schedule can help you regulate many of the symptoms of seasonal depression. For example, many people struggle with getting to sleep and a schedule can help. Your seasonal depression can also be aided by maintaining a balanced diet and introducing more exercise into your routine. Even just 30 minutes a day can be helpful. There are many different types of depression including seasonal depression. Learning more about them and how to deal with symptoms can be beneficial. You can pursue a variety of treatment options until you find what works for you. Take time to learn more about depression .