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Some people are not letting in what would make them happy right now. It may not feel right to be happy right now, when so many are suffering. If this applies, please know that your happiness is not about you, well not just about you anyway. The truth is that whatever emotional valence you bring to the world impacts the world, and there is responsibility in that. 

Emotional Contagion

Think about it. Close your eyes and imagine walking into a room where everyone is agitated and agitating.  Now imagine walking into a room where everyone is supporting and enjoying each other and themselves. Everyone is connected to everyone else. So it makes a difference what we each bring to the room because emotional contagion is real.

Here is a good article on how emotional contagion transmits from the micro to macro—from person to person, within groups, organizations, and whole cultures too.  Simply put, both joy and misery are catchy so be careful where and with whom you spend your time. 

Good Company

I’m a big fan of good company, to recharge our batteries so we have even more resources to help out however we can. That’s how choosing our company carefully helps us to help the world.

The point here is that we have more reason to feel guilty for preventing our happiness than to feel guilty about letting it in. If we let happiness happen, we can spread it around, and sharing your light is just better for the health and well-being of all concerned. 

Sure, some people may envy the well-being that you exude, but a good number of them may also find it an inspiration, so it’s worth a try. Okay, but how? 

Just Smile

SMILE. That’s right, SMILE. A new study confirms what we may have heard before, that making the facial muscles into a smile really does work. When your facial muscles are smiling they stimulate the brain’s emotion center (amygdala) to release neurotransmitters that essentially fake out you and your brain into a happy state. 

What if You Don’t Feel Like Smiling

If you just don’t feel like smiling, either because you think it’s not right, or because you have something on your plate or your heart that just makes it too hard, that’s okay. It’s okay to not be okay. But, If you want to, when you are ready, you can try this:

Hold a pen between your teeth. It makes the face into a smile and your brain hardly knows the difference between this and the real thing. Don’t believe it? Give it a try. Practice, practice, practice… see what happens and let us know in comments below.

Warm wishes,

Madelaine