Recent studies show that your brain can be rewired through neuroplasticity. This means that you’re able to delete negative brain connections to improve or even eliminate anxiety, along with other forms of chronic negative thought processes. There are many ways you can start to change the brain connections you have from negative to positive, many of which can easily be done right in the comfort of your home, for free or with next to no effort. Without further ado, here are 8 practices that can help you to rewire your brain for happiness.
First way: meditation…of course. Meditation is the process of quieting the mind through breathing techniques. Yes, that’s it. It is proven to be effective in rewiring the brain. In fact, a new study shows you only need to meditate for a minimum of 2 minutes a day to start harnessing the benefits which include permanently rewiring your brain.
Second way: count your blessings. Whenever you’re in a difficult situation, allow yourself to think about what you are truly grateful for instead of focusing on the bad. You’ll find that your negative thoughts and emotions will start to wither away.
Third way: take more walks. Something as simple as taking a walk three times a week can rewire your brain to be more positive. Add in some mindfulness into your walk, and those positive feelings are certain to increase.
Fourth way: take time to write and reflect. Just 20 minutes of writing about a positive experience has been shown to dramatically improve happiness.
Fifth way: set a goal every single day. Setting a goal for the day gives you purpose and when that goal is achievable, you feel great about accomplishing it every day.
Sixth way: do a random act of kindness 5 times a week. When you help someone out of nothing but goodwill, you’ll also find it to be healing for yourself.
Seventh way: stop your “I’ll be happy when…” in its tracks. We tend to think we’ll be happy once we reach a certain point in life, but by thinking this, we only put ourselves in a position where we’re constantly waiting for something to bring us joy. Instead, find a reason to be happy now. There’s no time to wait.
Eighth way: enter the flow zone. Whatever you are doing, become completely absorbed in it. Don’t get distracted by yesterday’s thoughts or tomorrow’s concerns, or your pending to-do list. When you enter the floor zone, you allow the ego to fall and time to fly.
