The Science Behind Happiness

In order to understand that feeling of walking on clouds as if the world is never to end, we must get a little scientific at first.

Hormones are responsible for major changes in our bodies. Thank you to these chemical reactions, other processes in our body can take place. These include growing, controlling your metabolism for the pizza you ate last night and even changing your mood from happy to stressed out in a matter of seconds.

Also known as the happy hormones, dopamine, serotonin, oxytocin and endorphins are all responsible for your euphoric moments of dancing and singing in front of your mirror. This is triggered by functions such as the inhibition of certain brain areas, control of rational thinking and adjustment of satisfaction levels.

Now that we have become slight experts in neurochemistry after this express lecture, you will probably be looking forward to applying the theory onto a more practical scenario. How can we boost our happiness in a natural way?

Here are my favourite top three methods:

1. Listening to music

Playing your favourite tunes has been proven to have a therapeutic effect on your brain. Whether it is heavy metal you enjoy, Steve Aoki's latest Tomorrowland session or a more relaxed James Blunt, you will be rewarded for listening to whatever you prefer at the right moment. Music can have a painkiller effect on those hard moments even if it makes us cry even more when we are feeling down. It creates bonds and soothes our brains, even making ourselves feel understood by the singer.  

2. Stress relievers

Ranging from practicing yoga up to punching a boxing bag. Stress is your body's response to high levels of demand or difficult situations. Even though it can help us get through deadlines in a more efficient way, it is surely not good for our organisms. In fact, stress affects your nervous system in a very drastic way. It can induce negative consequences such as memory loss, physical pain, nausea or even being immunosuppressed, which may lead you to catching diseases. The more you face stressful situations, the easier and quicker it is to undergo that feeling again. Moreover, this can lead to other problems such as mental disorders, anxiety or depression.

3. Real social contact

Say goodbye to your social media platforms (at least for a while). It has been reported that there is a direct correlation between the number of hours an individual spends online and its consequent levels of low self-esteem. Abusing of Instagram, Snapchat and even Twitter (yes, also Twitter, that fantastic world where one can rant about everything and anything) can have a negative effect on ourselves. In a world where we are constantly comparing with each other and are bombarded by the 'perfect lifestyle' pictures, it is said that upcoming generations will suffer the highest rates of psychological disorders ever.

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