8 Tips For Happiness

The blues are not just a color spectrum in the rainbow, but a lack of zest and excitement for life. Sadness can be chemical, situational, and environmental. Some things are out of our control, but there are a handful of things we can do to help get a pep in our step and boost our mood!

Here are 8 strategies to improve quality of life and emotional wellbeing.

1. Exercise

Exercise is beneficial for more than just your physical health. The endorphins and oxytocin released during exercise, especially pleasurable exercise, is monumental to your emotional wellbeing.

Incorporating movement in your daily routine is a sustainable practice you can implement to boost your mood and happiness.

If you naturally struggle getting yourself to the gym or jumping on the treadmill, try incorporating movement that is fun to you. Maybe that’s dancing with a few girlfriends, taking your dogs for a walk, or playing pickleball with your church friends.

Exercise doesn’t have to be boring, routine, or a hard hiit workout the latest influencer posted. When you can find fun ways to incorporate movement into your life, the healthier and happier you will become. Extra bonus if you can move outside and with friends!

2. Sunshine

There’s a reason June is known as “June Gloom”. The cloudy, dark, and gloomy weather can take a toll on your mental health and mood. Turns out, sunshine is beneficial for more than a nice summertime tan.

We can’t deny the many benefits sunshine plays on our mental health. One of the most researched cases is the positive benefits of improved mood. Studies show an increase in serotonin (feel good hormone) in the brain during sun exposure.

And for those living in colder climates, you don’t have to worry. Luckily, the mood boost isn’t affected by the variation in temperatures, but more so how bright and sunny the day was. Whether you’re living in the cold or soaking in the heat, try stepping outside throughout the day to give a little sunshine boost to your mood.

3. Sleep

Funny enough, sunshine has a great influence on the quality of your sleep. Morning sunshine helps to produce serotonin in the body (which we just learned is beneficial for your mood). But what you may not have known is that serotonin is a precursor to melatonin. Which means that the more serotonin you have in the body, the more melatonin you will naturally produce later in the evening.

Melatonin is the sleepytime hormone. We want our melatonin to increase in the evening and be at its lowest in the morning. This will aid in a restful and restorative night's rest.

You might be asking, what is the connection between sleep and mood? Well, there’s a big one. You might already recognize the impact of a sleepless night on your mood, making you more irritable, short-tempered, and easily triggered. Once you get some quality zzz’s, you’re mood tends to lighten up.

Studies show that even intermittent periods of poor quality sleep have a direct correlation with decreased mood, higher levels of stress, anger, and mental exhaustion. Luckily, when sleep quality improves shortly after, your mood can be boosted back up.

4. Supplements

As we can assume from the title “supplements”. These types of vitamins are designed to ‘supplement’ the diet and lifestyle. And although a supplement seems like it would create a minor impact on quality of life and wellbeing, some companies and formulations can make a lasting and life changing impact.

For those struggling with low mood, they might want to try out a mood boosting formulation from LifeSeasons called Mood Stabili-T. This formula has been shown to support a feeling of calmness and emotional well-being. There are a blend of vitamins and herbs that help to stabilize and balance mood by promoting healthy neurotransmission (connections in the brain).

You’ll also find synergistic ingredients like L-Theanine, L-Tyrosine, 5-HTP, B Vitamins, combined with modulating herbs like Saffron, Rhodiola, Lemon Balm, Passion Flower, and Ginkgo to support a balanced and positive attitude, and a feeling of calmness and resiliency when confronting life’s challenges.

5. Mindset

One of the most impactful pieces of advice I ever heard was that “happiness is a choice.” Pain is inevitable, but suffering is optional. We all face different challenges in life, some greater than others. But the way you handle these challenges and respond to them is more important than what you face.

This was such a tremendous lesson in my life. We can’t avoid all hurt and pain, but we can choose our own path. We can choose less suffering. We can choose happiness.

One of my favorite articles I’ve ever read in regards to suffering and happiness was this one https://becomingbetter.org/suffering-pain-x-resistance/ by Chris Loper. I’d highly recommend giving it a glance, but for those of you on a short time frame, here are a few takeaways.

• Pain is inevitable, but suffering is optional.

• Suffering = Pain x Resistance

• “The suffering we associate with pain isn’t really caused by the pain itself; it’s caused by our resistance to the pain.”

• “Resistance is a compass that usually points toward the exact thing you ought to be doing right now.”

Ultimately, the less suffering we experience in life, the greater capacity for happiness. When we can become proactive with our mindset and choose to live with resiliency, we set ourselves up for a more fulfilled and happier future.

6. Gratitude

Practicing gratitude can have a profound impact on your happiness and wellbeing. A simple way to incorporate gratitude into your lifestyle is by keeping a gratitude journal. Try building a routine where you journal in the morning or evening a list of things that you are grateful for. This list can vary from finding your partner in life, to the taste of a pumpkin spice latte on a cold morning.

You can either journal in paragraph/story format, or keep it simpler with bullet points. The practice of journaling what you’re grateful for will help shift you into a more positive mindset where it's easier and more natural to acknowledge the good things in your life on a regular basis.

When this habit becomes a consistent part of your routine, you’ll notice the benefits increase as your quality of life and happiness perk up.

7. Time Travel

This is a simple and effective role playing activity that can be accessed anywhere, and at any time. When you're in seasons or moments of sadness and gloom, try imagining yourself at the end of your life. If you were lying in a hospital bed looking back at where you are now, how would you feel about your current status? Would you be disappointed by the wasted time and energy on your negative feelings? Would you wish your younger self would have looked at the situation differently? Would you see the bigger picture of the life ahead of you and realize how little this unhappy moment was in comparison to what's in store?

Putting yourself in someone else’s shoes, or even your own shoes later in life, sometimes is the missing link in connecting the dots to quality of life and wellbeing.

8. Volunteer

One of the best ways to get out of your own head and unhappiness, is to get into someone else's. By that, I mean, bring the attention and energy onto someone else. Spend time with a loved one and ask about their day. Volunteer your time and energy to help others. Nothing will shift you out of your current situation quite like giving back to someone else. Besides the benefit of making an impact on others, you’ll find a surprising lift in mood and shift in perspective as you focus your attention and support on the world around you.

There are so many opportunities to volunteer all around you. It could be as simple as asking a neighbor if they need help mowing their lawn. Can you fold laundry for a friend who just had a baby. Or get more involved with your community and sign up for a children’s reading program for kids struggling with their education. Perhaps you can donate some time at a veteran’s organization or food shelter.

The options are endless. And the impact is lasting.