What makes people happiest

That, I think, is the revelation. Close relationships, more than money or fame, are what keep people happy throughout their lives, the study revealed. That finding proved true across the board among both the Harvard men and the inner-city participants. The long-term research has received funding from private foundations, but has been financed largely by grants from the National Institutes of Health, first through the National Institute of Mental Health, and more recently through the National Institute on Aging.

The people who were the most satisfied in their relationships at age 50 were the healthiest at age Those who had unhappy marriages felt both more emotional and physical pain. Those who kept warm relationships got to live longer and happier, said Waldinger, and the loners often died earlier.

According to the study, those who lived longer and enjoyed sound health avoided smoking and alcohol in excess. Researchers also found that those with strong social support experienced less mental deterioration as they aged. In part of a recent study , researchers found that women who felt securely attached to their partners were less depressed and more happy in their relationships two-and-a-half years later, and also had better memory functions than those with frequent marital conflicts.

Lists like this are useful only if you take action on at least one of the 10 areas above. This is the number one thing that makes people happy. A good way to improve your relationships is to learn the 5 languages of love.

Start using these with the people you love. Doing this alone will work wonders for your happiness. And theirs too! Sometimes it makes me happy to wallow in a bit of unhappiness but then I write to get it out of my system.

I feel happy when I create even if unhappiness causes the creativity. Right now, happiness is a calm ocean and a soft sunset. According to Joyfuldays. I think, you can say that smile is a reflection of happiness. The more we smile more look happy.

I believe its a good starting point to make world a happy place. Its cheerupz. There you can cheer up a sad face and park your website, blog or any third party url forever. Aw, this was a very nice post. In thought I want to write like this — taking time and actual effort to make a very good article is very rare….

I never felt it. I appreciate your honesty, and those are good questions as happiness is indeed intangible. Given your worldview that we exist just to suffer, you may find it interesting to read up on the Four Noble Truths of Buddha:.

I just discovered this site, looking for a little something to spark a happier healthier is that a word? This is a great list and I would like to add music to it. For a long time, I stopped watching TV. However, at least one of these studies specifically found this connection with caffeinated coffee but not tea, though others found the same effect for tea as well.

You don't have to be Don Draper to reap the benefits of some peace and quiet. Multiple studies suggest that meditating — focusing intently and quietly on the present for set periods of time — can help lessen feelings of depression and anxiety.

While it's possible that people with such brains might be more likely to meditate in the first place , other studies do show that people who complete a meditation program tend to show brain changes linked with self-awareness, perspective, and memory.

Stressed out? Head for a forest. One study found that a group of students sent into the trees for two nights had lower levels of cortisol — a hormone often used as a marker for stress — than those who spent the same two nights in a city. In another study , researchers found a decrease in both heart rate and cortisol levels in people in the forest when compared to those in urban areas. If living in a big city has you feeling a bit down, there's good news: A brief walk in nature could be all it takes to chase away those negative thoughts.

At least that's the finding of a new study published last month. In the study, a group of 38 Northern California ns 18 women and 20 men were split up into two groups — one who took a minute walk in nature and another that did the same walk in the city.

The nature walkers reported having fewer negative thoughts about themselves after the walk than before the walk, while the urban walkers reported no change.

What's more, fMRI brain scans revealed less activity in the subgenual prefrontal cortex sgPFC , a brain region that may play a key role in some mood disorders and has been linked with patterns of negative thought, according to the study.

Those who went on the urban walk did not show any of these benefits, the study found. Experiencing positive emotions not only appear to have the power to neutralize negative ones, but can also encourage people to be more proactive. Visiting a museum or seeing a concert is yet another way to boost your mood. A study that examined the anxiety, depression, and life satisfaction of over 50, adults in Norway offered an interesting link: People who participated in more cultural activities, like attending a play or joining a club, reported lower levels of anxiety and depression as well as a higher satisfaction with their overall quality of life.

So get out there and participate! Happiness is entirely subjective, meaning that what makes one person happy might affect someone else differently. However, listening to sad music seems to be a common activity that's been linked with increased happiness around the globe. For example, instead of setting a goal like "save the environment," try to recycle more. Those two examples were tested on a group of volunteers in a study published last year.

The people in the second group also reported a lower overall sense of personal happiness from completing their goal, the scientists report.

Ever heard someone say, 'If you're angry at someone, write them a letter and don't send it'? While that might seem like a waste of time, science reveals recording your feelings is great for clarifying your thoughts, solving problems more efficiently, relieving stress, and more.

A team of pyschologists recently hit on a neurological reason behind why this simple act might help us overcome some emotional distress. The researchers studied brain scans of volunteers who recorded an emotional experience for 20 minutes a day for 4 sessions. They then compared the brain scans with volunteers who wrote down a neutral experience for the same amount of time. The brain scans of the first group showed neural activity in a part of the brain responsible for dampening strong emotional feelings, s uggesting that the act of recording their experience calmed them.

This same neural activity was absent in the volunteers who recorded a neutral experience. Case in point: A study gave 46 volunteers an envelope with money in it wherein half were instructed to spend the money on themselves and the other half put the money towards a charitable donation or gift for someone they knew. Read the original article on Business Insider UK.

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies. Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today. Time beats money. A number of studies have shown that happier people prefer to have more time in their lives than more money.