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Written by Caroline Leaf

We live in a world where it is easy to think that happiness is something external: a product, a pill, or a lifestyle—it is all out there and ready for consumption. Yet, the happiest people are not those with lots of nice things or lots of likes on social media. These, of course, can help make life more comfortable, but they do not guarantee true happiness. Rather, lasting happiness comes from something deep within us, from our character: it is an internal joy and peace that allows us to appreciate the small things and the big things, a mental strength and steadfastness that helps us get through the hard times and still smile. It is the ability to embrace the good and bad, and learn equally from both.

How do we achieve this kind of happiness in life? What is the “secret” to happiness? Based on my research and clinical experience...

I have found that the happiest people:

1. Connect more with people than wifi
We are social beings. Our minds and brains thrive when we are part of a community, while isolation can wreak havoc on our mental and physical health. When we are isolated, our cortisol levels rise, which can cause low-grade inflammation across the brain and body, making us feel ill, reducing blood flow to the brain and upsetting our mental clarity, and our mood—isolation literally makes us lose our perspective!

When we connect with others, however, our brains and bodies respond in a positive way, healing our bodies, reducing cortisol levels and inflammation, while protecting the heart and immune system. Indeed, community can be “addictive”! The mesolimbic dopamine system, a system linked to addiction, lights up when we reach out and give to others, giving us a deep sense of happiness!

This is why it is so important that we all make an effort to reach out and connect with the people around us. This particularly important today. More and more people are isolated and have no one to turn to. We are facing a loneliness epidemic.

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