A Happiness Trick

I will be the first to admit that I've had a pretty amazing time this past year and a half. Things have gone really well and traveling has taught me a lot. It has allowed me to see and do some incredible things and make some true connections with amazing people. I've had a blast.

But it is not always as easy as the internet can make it seem. And moving to a new country doesn't come without challenges. I've been feeling off balance, not myself lately. I've been lonely and emotional. I miss my family and friends back home. I miss people back in Sydney and friends I made traveling. I really miss some of my friends and the genuine, funny connections I have with them.

I've been telling myself I'll feel more like myself soon. I've been trying to hike and get outdoors when I'm not working. I've been texting and trying to communicate with everyone I miss.

The other day, I remember some advice my friend Diane gave me after reading an article. The advice was really simple, all it asks is to spend 15 seconds 4 or 5 times a day to really appreciate the moment. The idea behind it is; due to evolution, our brains pay more attention to negative emotions because we needed negative emotions, like fear and stress to save our lives from immediate dangers (think lions, tigers and bears). But now every time we have a negative emotion, it doesn't save our lives and our brains focus on it and generally make us unhappy. The article suggested training our brains to focus on joyful and happy emotions by taking a small amount of time to appreciate a moment using as many senses as possible to activate as many parts of the brain as possible. For example; if you are outside walking or sitting somewhere take 15 or 30 seconds to appreciate the smell of the outdoors, the breeze or the sunshine on your face, find the beauty in something around you, and notice the birds chirping. In 15 seconds, you took what could just be a quick walk somewhere into a moment that can change your whole mood. If you do this multiple times a day you can train your mind to be a little happier.

It's pretty common sense when you think about it and it's really not that hard. It's a practice to actually help you "live in the moment" and develop positive thoughts. I've been doing it a couple times a day for the last couple days and I think it's making things a little better. 15 or 30 second is longer than I would normally take to appreciate something and it really slows me down, gives me a nice mini break. 

I really truly miss you all. I hope everyone has an amazing day. Thanks for reading. 

Love.