KarunaNews Story

This article provides 5 practices that can make you happier. One is engaging gratitude regularly. When you're thankful, you're also dishing out serotonin – a chemical that the brain delights on. Get started with this simple question, "What am I grateful for?" Physical exercise is another pathway to happiness; every time you engage in physical activity, your body releases endorphins – your brain's messengers. They provide a natural high, making you happier. Recognizing and naming emotions helps calm down the amygdala, a part of your brain that signals an alarm for fight or flight. When the amygdala is less activated, it paves the way for the logical part of the brain to step up. By naming the emotions, we are taming them. Spending time with other humans whose company we enjoy, face-to-face, causes our brains to release a cocktail of feel-good chemicals. Finally, getting into "the zone" or flow state is another way to access happiness.