When was the last time you asked yourself, “Am I happy?” Don’t be too hard on yourself. This is not a question most people ask themselves on the regular. Everyone is constantly working, facing challenges and moving on to the next task; they forget to slow down and reflect on life. Below are 3 ways to increase happiness in your life.
Healthy Relationships
Relationships, whether it be romantic or friendly, can be the biggest factor in having a happy life. A person can feel on top of the world when these relationships go smoothly and are full of support. On the opposite side, the arguing and dysfunction that can come with these relationships can hinder someone from feeling happy. A good way to assess the relationships in your life is to think about how you feel when you are around certain people. A healthy relationship will include you feeling positive about your interactions with them. Hold on to healthy relationships once they are determined. Spend more time with those people and cherish them. If there are relationships that do not bring you happiness, look down to tip number 2 about setting boundaries in these unhealthy relationships.
Set Boundaries
Boundaries are what you can place in your life to protect yourself- a must in the journey to increasing happiness. Going back to relationships, especially unhealthy relationships, boundaries can communicate to others that you won’t accept being disrespected, you won’t attend that event, you can’t take on that extra task or you want to simply have self-care time. Setting boundaries can be tough to do, especially with close people who are not familiar with people setting boundaries. That’s ok, it will get easier the more you set them. It will pay off in the long run.
Therapy
There is a perception that only people with severe depression or a debilitating mental illness should be in therapy. I want to help spread the message that therapy is a tool for everyone to improve their life. You can work to stop, reflect, and specifically focus on your life. A therapist will ask the questions such as: Are you happy? What makes you happy in life? What hinders you from being happy? These are just a few examples of how a therapist can help you to become more aware of what brings you happiness and what brings negativity to your life. After all of that is identified, the work begins to make real changes that will give you different results in life.
I hope these 3 tips will help you increase the happiness in your life. We at Amy Wine Counseling Center would love to help you to make improvements and make positive changes. If you want to learn more about how to increase happiness in your life feel free to give us a call to schedule an appointment today.