How to Feel Happy

10 Secrets of Happy Moms

No one is as happy as a clam all day, every day. But experts say learning to find joy in little moments is the real trick to feeling content
By Siri Carpenter prevention
 

Seek Out Joy in the Small Stuff

The value of taking time to appreciate positive experiences seems obvious—trite, even.

10 Secrets of Happy Moms // mother and daughter sharing a milkshake © Thinkstock

Image: Thinkstock

Yet it's a skill that few people have mastered, says Loyola University Chicago social psychologist Fred B. Bryant, PhD. The reason is simple: We're busy, and we have a lot on our minds. There'll always be other sunrises, we say to ourselves, but if we don't hit the shower soon, we'll never beat the traffic to work. Under the weight of our daily responsibilities and worries, we reflexively tune out the fleeting, spontaneous events that could bring us deeper joy and greater health. A substantial body of related research indicates that people with a sunnier outlook about growing older recover more quickly from illness and live longer—7 1/2 years on average, according to a large Yale University study—than people who have bleaker views. (Find out what happy women know!)

For more than 20 years, Bryant has worked to understand what he terms mindful savoring: the things we think and do to intensify or prolong positive feelings. "We all know people who are like this," Bryant says. "They're the life of the party, and they're the first people you want to turn to when something good happens."

Here’s how to steal their gift: 10 surefire strategies to discover pleasure and satisfaction in everyday moments, even when life is not going your way.

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