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Purposefully examining our personalities for flaws and negative traits can be unsettling but the rewards are many. Psychologist Stanislava Puač Jovanović explains what shadow work is, the benefits it offers, and five ways how you can start doing it. In one of his most famous quotes from Modern Man in Search of a Soul, Carl Gustav Jung said: “How can I be substantial if I do not cast a shadow? I must have a dark side also If I am to be whole.” Shadow work is based on Jung’s concept of the shadow, which, in its simplest, represents the parts of our personalities we would rather not possess. However, we do. Not only possess them – they make up part of who we are. Regardless of how uncomfortable we are with those aspects of our Self, they are here. And, most importantly, they guide our actions from a shadow. That is why shadow work is essential if we are to become fully conscious of why we do the things we do. But, what is shadow work? This article will explain the basic concepts of shadow work, why it is essential and how to do it. What is shadow work? In his uncanny ability to name complex concepts in a way that resonates with everyone, Jung spoke of the shadow. It is the part of ourselves that holds all that a person has no wish to be. However, it also contains all sorts of qualities, capacities and potential. In Jung’s own words, the “shadow is that hidden, repressed, for the most part, inferior and guilt-laden personality whose ultimate ramifications reach back into the realm of our animal ancestors… If it has been believed hitherto that the human shadow was the source of evil, it can now be ascertained on a closer investigation that the unconscious man, that is, his shadow does not consist only of morally reprehensible tendencies, but also displays a number of good qualities, such as normal instincts, appropriate reactions, realistic insights, creative impulses […]“. • INTERESTED IN SELF-GROWTH? Sign-up for free courses in our happiness Academy • The shadow is usually born with our parents’ or society’s disapproval of our impulses. We then learn to block and deny them to ourselves and, simply put, be “good”. But, we do not only change our behaviour. We choose to “forget” those unacceptable impulses. Learn how to do shadow work and unlock potential shutterstock/Douceflour The problem arises when a person represses the shadow – which we invariably most often do. By sweeping parts of our Self we are uncomfortable with under the rug, we expose ourselves to many adversities. Studies on the perils of repression revealed that it can lead to: Loss of energy Increased risk of cancer and cardiovascular diseases Suboptimal interpersonal interactions - we feel threatened (and our physiological responses match that feeling), while others also feel threatened by our suppression of emotions A decline in physical and mental health and the overall well-being Loss of creativity and productivity So, what is shadow work? Shadow work is a process in which you learn to recognize, understand and accept your shadow. Although it sounds straightforward, it is, in fact, a laborious endeavour. However, avoiding the adversities of repressing the shadow is well worth the effort. How shadow work can improve your life Living without the shadow, that is, without it in your consciousness, means living an incomplete life. You are not consciously in charge of all your decisions, perceptions and actions. Not convinced? If you take a closer look at your experiences, you will surely notice incidents when you acted “out of character”. Yet, this slip-up did not just come out of nowhere. Your shadow self took over. Indeed, the parts of ourselves that we ignore tend to turn against us eventually. “When you embark on shadow work, you can expect a range of positive outcomes. Shadow work is a profound way to enhance your relationship with yourself, others, and the world.” When you embark on shadow work, you can expect a range of positive outcomes. In response to the question: “What is shadow work?” these benefits offer an answer – shadow work is a profound way to enhance your relationship with yourself, others, and the world. Improved relationships What we perceive as flaws, when repressed, is most often projected onto others. We are judgmental, dismissive, and hypercritical – we hate weaknesses in others. Shadow work makes you more grounded and accepting of others. Increased confidence When you learn to understand and accept your shadow, you can become authentically more confident. You are no longer a captive of your repressed fears of condemnation. You own all your parts and need not frantically hide them from others and yourself. This creates more inner confidence. Enhanced energy and physical health Repressing emotions and thoughts is arduous work. As said before, it takes a toll on your energy levels and has been shown to even lead to a range of diseases, from chronic fatigue to cancer. When you let the dam open, it can be scary at first – but it will release your energy and help you be healthier. Psychological integration and maturity Mature adulthood is not a given. According to some authors, merely 2 per cent of adults reach this psychological development stage. Shadow work brings you closer to authentic maturity and wisdom. Greater creativity Creativity, according to humanistic psychologists such as Maslow and Rogers, is a hallmark of self-actualised, mentally healthy individuals. When you repress your “dark side”, the collateral damage is creativity in all life areas. On the flip side, when you open the gates between all the parts of your psyche, creative impulses will start to flow again. How to practise shadow work If you started reading this article with the question: “What is shadow work?” by now, you are probably wondering, “OK, so how can I do shadow work?” Although completing shadow work usually requires a professional’s help, there are plenty of activities you can do on your own to start communicating with your shadow. Overall, shadow work exercises centre around three basic principles – awareness, honesty and acceptance. Here are five activities to get you started with befriending your shadow. 1. Develop self-awareness The most obvious yet, highly challenging step in shadow work is cultivating awareness of your thoughts, feelings, and actions. Our shadow, albeit hidden, gives clues of who she/he is. Repressed content appears in our dreams, slip-ups, projections, acting-outs. Learn to observe your experiences. Who makes you particularly angry? Why? What it is in others you cannot stand? What do you dream about that feels foreign when you wake up? In which situations you tend to “lose it”? Meditation can assist you in fostering self-awareness. Mindfulness offers awareness with suspended judgement – just what you need when you do shadow work. 2. Be unswervingly honest Yes, a predictable piece of advice, but a tough one. Most of us spent our entire lives with a strong urge not to let out flaws show. As good we are at hiding imperfections from others – we are masters in hiding them from ourselves. Facing up to all sides of who you are is part of shadow work Nonetheless, what you hide from yourself owns you. So, face the monster. Do not do it in a judgmental way. That would be your Super Ego talking. You want to be unshakably honest but not criticizing or condemning. It will not be comfortable. It will take courage. But, at the end of the road, autonomy and genuine confidence await you. (Also, no one is looking. Nobody is listening. Just be frank.) 3. Be compassionate with yourself The way to avoid rife (unconstructive, to be precise) self-criticism is to practise self-compassion. Become your best friend, unconditionally supportive, and be good to yourself at all times. You will need it once you start facing the skeletons in your psychological closet. According to Kristin Neff, a psychologist researching self-compassion, it has three components: Self-kindness (being supportive, kind, and forgiving towards yourself) Common humanity (understanding that you are not alone in your pain and imperfection) Mindfulness (accepting your experiences without being condemnatory) 4. Recollect your projections As you read above, what we repress about ourselves, we tend to project onto others. Your job now is to recollect those projections. Claim the weaknesses and flaws back. Yes, you are not perfect. But you must come to peace with that, instead of hating, being repulsed by, or fearing others. It is the only way to see yourself, others, and the world realistically. “Shadow work is a process in which you learn to recognize, understand and accept your shadow. Although it sounds straightforward, it is, in fact, laborious.” So, the next time you notice that you are possibly overreacting about someone’s actions, ask yourself – what is making me so angry/scared/judgmental? What part of me is hiding behind my reaction? Do this again and again, and respond with the steadfast honesty we spoke of earlier. 5. Keep a shadow journal The final step in shadow work is to keep a journal. The disowned parts of ourselves are tricky. They can still elude you – even after you have noticed them. Your mind will keep trying to repress the darkness for some time. RELATED: Journaling techniques – travels to our interior So, write down your insights regularly. Make sure you come back to your notes from time to time to refresh your memory, in a sense. After a while, they will finally stick in your conscious awareness. The wrap: embrace your wholeness Getting to know anyone’s “dark” side is always an unnerving experience. But when it is your own darkness, it can be downright scary. However, let us channel Socrates to encourage ourselves to do so – “the unexamined life is not worth living”. Indeed, you will never be complete unless you know and accept every nook and cranny of your soul. You will never be the master of your actions unless you learn to look your darkest motives in the eye. So, venture into shadow work as soon as now. You might be amazed by how more vibrant life feels once you dismiss the veil of repression and become accepting of your whole Self. • Main image: shutterstock/Dean Drobot happiness.com | The fine art of being: learn, practise, share Are you a happiness.com member? Sign up for free to enjoy: ■ our happiness magazine with practical life tips ■ sharing and supporting others in our happiness forum ■ developing with free online classes in our Academy Self-help | Coaching | Kindness | Authenticity Written by Stanislava Puač Jovanović Stanislava Puač Jovanović has a master’s degree in psychology and works as a freelance writer and researcher in this area. Her primary focus is on questions relating to mental health, stress-management, self-development and well-being.

There have been plenty of feel-good health and environmental stories in the press during June. Ed Gould rounds up his Top 10 from the past month to uplift and inspire. June 2021 was a particularly auspicious month for good news stories. In fact, there were many items that could have made it into this month's Top 10 which didn't. So, what were the most positive and heart-warming stories from the past month? 1. 'Extinct' orchid flowers in London A species of orchid that was once thought to be extinct in the UK was discovered in June in the unlikeliest of places. Rather than being found by researchers deep in the Amazonian basin, the small flower was spotted on the top of an 11-storey building in the City of London. The orchid – known as Serapias parvifloraIt – was spotted high up on the roof of a bank. Usually the plant is most at home in Mediterranean-like conditions and was last seen growing in the wile in the UK over ten years ago in Cornwall. How it made its way to the rooftops of one of the city's biggest investment banks remains a mystery, however. 2. Cure for hiccuping found? It may not be a debilitating ailment but – as we all know – a case of the hiccups can be annoying. But there is some good news for anyone who has to suffer hiccuping on a regular basis. According to Science Alert, a new system has been developed which helps people to stop hiccuping almost immediately. What's more, so far it's thought to never have failed. When people's diaphragms twitch, there are many homespun remedies you can try. However, the HiccAway has been developed by a start-up technology team. The device – which you suck from – causes the diaphragm to contract, thereby preventing people who use it from producing more hiccups. All you need is a glass of water and this straw-like gadget to stop hiccuping ever again! 3. Coffee consumption is good for your liver Most people avoid drinking too much coffee because it's a stimulant and can increase anxiety levels. However, a report in New Scientist suggests that consuming even decaffeinated coffee can help to avoid liver disease from developing. The discovery was made at the UK's University of Southampton where hundreds of thousands of people's drinking habits were taken into account when looking at their medical histories. Over the course of about 11 years, the incidences of chronic liver disease and steatosis were found to be lower among coffee drinkers. Indeed, the associated death rate from liver-related conditions was much better among people who regularly consumed the beverage, too. Coffee could keep liver disease at bay shutterstock/wavebreakmedia 4. Flow activities are best when awaiting news According to a report in the news feed of the University of California Riverside, the best thing you can do when you are anxiously awaiting news is to do something your brain will gain flow from. The idea is that of Kate Sweeny, a professor in psychology, who put together her approach from two different studies with 729 participants. Rather than doing nothing and allowing the mind to worry, Sweeeny's academic paper suggests that meditation is a better activity. However, Sweeny recognises that this is not something everyone can do so she suggests watching an emotional film or listening to some powerful music instead as a way of achieving flow and a less troubled mind. RELATED: Flow state and happiness – how to achieve it 5. Sleeping earlier may help to combat depression According to the New York Times and numerous other media outlets, recent research suggests that going to bed an hour earlier than usual will help to stave off depression. Doing so will move the waking cycle forwards, something that has been found to reduce the likelihood of a major depressive state forming by as much as 23 per cent. RELATED: 14 sleep hacks to get a good night's rest 6. Mindfulness and birdwatching had positive effects in the pandemic Many people have turned to mindfulness to help them during the current global healthcare crisis. However, a study published in the International Journal of Environment Research and Public Health has demonstrated that when people take part in birdwatching activities in a mindful way, they gain an even more significant boost. According to Psychology Today, birdwatching was one of the few outdoor activities people could do mindfully while maintaining social distancing. Its report suggested that staying closer to home and watching local birds helped many people to connect with nature in a way they might not have usually done, thereby gaining mental health benefits including a sense of inner joy. Birdwatching is both mindful and joyful shutterstock/soft_light 7. Drones help get rid of Galapagos Islands' rat population Famous for the development of Darwin's theory of evolution, the Galapagos Islands have been overrun by invasive rats in some places. However, drone technology has been deployed to defeat the rodents. Officials in the Galapagos National Park now reckon that two islands are completely rat-free for the first time in well over a century, helping native species to thrive, unhindered by the rats' presence. By using drones, the extermination team was able to get bait to the precise locations it was needed to target the creatures without causing damage to the natural inhabitants of the islands. 8. Urban forest announced in Glasgow Scotland's biggest city is due to get a good deal greener thanks to a new initiative that will see tens of millions of trees planted in and around the urban environment. Cowan Park, in Barrhead, and Barwood Park, in Erskine, have already been earmarked for the project already but all of the local authority areas in the city will take part. The idea, according to local councillors, is to make the city more attractive as well as offsetting much of the carbon that the cityscape produces each year. It is expected to take ten years to bring the urban forest to fruition. RELATED: Forest bathing – 6 science-backed benefits 9. The future looks more promising for bees Bees have long been declining in numbers around the world. This is big problem for plants – and humans – as the black and yellow creatures are such efficient pollinators. One of the things that has been making life harder for bees is the widespread use of pesticides in agriculture and horticulture. However, according to a report in New Atlas, bees will be able to gain immunity from such sprays if they consume an antidote. Researchers from Cornell University in the United States have come up with just such a detoxifying formula which bees can pick up as they feed, thereby offering them resistance to the sort of insecticides that might otherwise have caused them to die. Could bees gain immunity to insecticides? shutterstock/Maciej Olszewski 10. Dengue fever infections set to fall According to the BBC, a virus spread among mosquitoes as they interact with one another could cause rates of Dengue disease to fall dramatically. A trial took place in Indonesia whereby the virus was introduced into the mosquito population. During it, the infection rate for the condition was found to drop by well over three-quarters. In recent times there have been as many as 400 million Dengue fever infections each year, so it's hoped the technique will now be used in other locations where outbreaks are common. • What was your favourite story from this month? Share your thoughts with the community in the comments below... happiness.com | The fine art of being: learn, practise, share Are you a happiness.com member yet? Sign up for free now to enjoy: ■ our happiness magazine with practical life tips ■ share and support others in our happiness forum ■ develop with free online classes in our happiness Academy Nature | Biotechnology | Biology | Positive news Written by Ed Gould Ed Gould is a UK-based journalist and practitioner of Reiki.

Is it possible to relieve stress, improve heart health and reap other benefits just by regulating our breath? Sonia Vadlamani explains how conscious breathing can contribute towards better mental and physical health, and how to practise it from the comfort of your home. Breath is vital for life. We’re always breathing, yet it’s something that most of us are barely aware of. However, our natural breathing rhythms can have a substantial impact on how both our body and mind function. Research shows that our breathing patterns change according to the emotions or thoughts we’re experiencing. For example, we tend to draw slow, deeper breaths when we’re happy, resulting in the release of happiness hormones. In contrast, we take sharp, shallow breaths when we’re angry or stressed, activating the stress receptors in the amygdala region in the brain. Indeed, in the current climate of a global pandemic, living with stress and anxiety has become increasingly commonplace, and hence keeping a periodic check on stress levels and devising effective stress management methods is more crucial than ever. Conscious breathing can help to reduce stress shutterstock/UfaBizPhoto What is conscious breathing? As the name suggests, conscious breathing involves bringing awareness towards your breath and then altering it deliberately to achieve a desired outcome. Also known as controlled breathing, conscious breathing can help us recognize our response towards stressors and emotions, enabling us to manage our stress in a better manner, thus preventing conditions like burnout, anxiety and depression. There is ample research that establishes a strong connection between our breathing patterns, pace of breathing and our corresponding thoughts, emotions and behavior. This makes conscious breathing massively effective – modifying the pace of our breathing can slow down our heart rate, modulate stress triggers and enable us to think more rationally. “Conscious breathing can help us recognize our response towards stressors and emotions, enabling us to manage our stress in a better manner.” While conscious breathing may sound like a modern-era invention, recommendations for breath modulation techniques for better health date back to first millennium B.C. Ancient religions like Hinduism and Taoism have advocated breath as an ‘essential life-force’ in the form of prana and qi respectively. Interestingly, yogic practices like pranayama or ‘breath-retention’ utilize controlled breathing techniques for enhancing concentration and vitality. RELATED: Tummo breathing and meditation – a guide Breathing is “meditation for people who can’t meditate”, states Dr Belisa Vranich, the author of the best-selling book Breathe. Indeed, most relaxation therapies and stress-relief techniques utilize breathwork as their anchor, as breathing is the common factor involved in these methods for calming the body and the mind. A simple way to practise conscious breathing Conscious breathing is simple to practise and doesn’t require any specialized equipment. What's more, it can be practised by children and adults alike, from the comfort of their home. However, it’s essential to set aside some time to truly be able to reap the benefits. Here’s a simple mindful breathing practice you can follow with ease: Start by getting into the right posture – seated or lying down – keeping your spine in a neutral position. Place one or both hands on your belly. Inhale slowly and feel the sense of expansion as your breath reaches where your hand is. Hold your breath to a count of 3. You can adjust this duration as per your comfort. Exhale slowly as you feel the belly muscles underneath your hands relaxing. Observe your breath pattern for at least 4 - 10 minutes. During this practice, be sure to engage in diaphragmatic breathing. This involves inhaling deeply as you expand the belly, and then exhaling slowly as you contract the diaphragm and allow the belly to deflate. You can combine conscious breathing with a form of meditation or even restorative yoga to increase its effectiveness. Merging conscious breathing with mindfulness meditation can boost memory power as well. The benefits of conscious breathing Here are some ways in which conscious breathing can improve your quality of life and help you sustain better well-being: 1. Relaxes the nervous system When confronted with danger, our nervous system or sympathetic drive generates a ‘fight-or-flight’ response which can potentially help us rise to face a challenge. However, sometimes the smallest and everyday woes like a traffic jam and impending deadlines begin invoking this involuntary stress response on a continued basis. This can result in immune system suppression or even conditions like depression and anxiety, owing to the excessive stress build-up. • JOIN US! Sign up to learn more about meditation and mindfulness • Resetting our breathing pattern can calm down the nervous system, preventing a perennial sympathetic overdrive condition. Conscious breathing allows activation of the parasympathetic nervous system, or the ‘rest-and-digest’ signal, which enables us to function in a relaxed state. 2. Creates energy boost Conscious breathing involves taking deep, slow breaths as you engage your abdominal muscles and diaphragm, instead of stressing the shoulder and neck areas as most of us are usually habituated to. Engaging respiratory muscles in this manner enables better oxygen supply for the tissues and cells in the body. This increased oxygen reach can make us feel more energized, focused, and can even boost productivity. 3. Helps you focus Sometimes it’s difficult to concentrate on the task at hand or meditate properly because of our inability to focus. Indeed, billboards, constantly buzzing phones and other technological inventions contend for our attention all the time, making it more difficult to be able to concentrate on a single thought or task. Breathing consciously boosts focus and attention Conscious breathing requires us to focus on our breathing pattern, which can help us calm our senses and organize our thought patterns in a productive manner. A 2017 breathing intervention study from Beijing Normal University that involved 40 individuals found that diaphragmatic breathing could enhance sustained attention, in addition to a dip in cortisol (the body's main stress hormone). 4. Relieves muscle tension We tend to hold our breath or draw irregular breaths when we’re tensed or are faced with stress stimuli, which allows our sympathetic nervous drive to kick in. While this response to stress can be helpful in the short-term, drawing shallower and faster breaths can easily become a habitual trait, which may involuntarily result in constant muscle tension, especially in the neck and upper back areas. A 2018 study from Thailand's Khon Kaen University involving female subjects with neck tension and pain complaints found that deep and slow breathing practices reduce muscle tension, pain alleviation, and improved heartrate variability, even in the short run. Progressive muscle relaxation is another therapeutic method prescribed for relieving muscle tension and averting anxiety, with the help of conscious breathing techniques. 5. Enhances emotional wellbeing “Feelings come and go like clouds in a windy sky. Conscious breathing is my anchor,” advocated Thích Nhat Hanh, the world-renowned spiritual teacher and mindfulness expert. By calming down our nervous system, conscious breathing offers clarity in thought and enables us to be mindful of our feelings. “There is ample research that establishes a strong connection between our breathing patterns, pace of breathing and our corresponding thoughts, emotions, and behavior.” The idea here is not to eradicate the unpleasant emotional states entirely, but to gradually learn to be aware of them and experience them with self-compassion. This process allows us to respond to our emotions in a productive and helpful manner, thus potentially preventing the tendency to ruminate and improving our emotional wellbeing. 6. Regulates blood pressure Taking a deep breath could help reduce stress and prevent your blood pressure from spiking. Indeed, research suggests that controlled breathing can improve one’s ‘baroreflex sensitivity’, thus regulating blood pressure and preventing hypertension. Conscious breathing can be utilized as a therapeutic approach for boosting heart health and improving vigor. 7. Enables better decision-making Research shows that taking deep and controlled breaths can accelerate vagal nerve activity, thereby improving heart rate variability and lowering stress levels, in addition to aiding better decision-making ability. Indeed, Navy SEALs and chess champions have relied on conscious breathing techniques like ‘box breathing’ to be able to make sound decisions when under stress. RELATED: Uncovering the healing power of the breath In a collaborative study from 2019, researchers from Belgium, France and the Seychelles asked management students to follow the ‘5-2-7 pattern breathing technique’. This method entails inhalation for the count of 5, holding the breath for 2 counts and exhalation for 7 counts. The students carried out the breathing exercise before answering a series of questions in a decision-making test. In addition to facilitating better decision-making, the researchers found that conscious breathing also prevented post-performance stress among the students. 8. Lowers stress and anxiety Research points out that our degree of ‘alertness’, or how ‘awake’ we are, determines the course of action we choose when we are under psychological pressure or in a potentially stressful situation. While being ‘optimally alert’ can improve our mental performance, thus boosting our decision-making ability, alertness beyond the critical point can trigger stress, ultimately hampering performance under duress. Interestingly, conscious breathing tends to modify one’s arousal levels to the ‘optimal or conditioned level’ required for enhanced mental performance, while controlling any further rise in arousal levels, thus keeping stress and anxiety at bay. Round up: conscious breathing In conclusion, the advice to slow down your breath and pay attention to the same is not just a generic suggestion or mere commonsense, but a statement that holds merit. Taking deep, diaphragmatic breaths and focusing on the pace of our breath can impact our body and mind in a positive manner. Acknowledging the power of conscious breathing can be empowering, as it can enable us to draw from our innate wisdom and make headway towards a positive transformation. • Main image: shutterstock/AKSAMIT happiness.com | The fine art of being: learn, practise, share Are you a happiness.com member yet? Sign up for free now to: ■ enjoy our happiness magazine with practical life tips ■ share and support others in our happiness forum ■ learn with free online classes in our happiness Academy Stress management | Motivation | Burnout Written by Sonia Vadlamani Fitness and healthy food blogger, food photographer and stylist, travel-addict and future self journaler. Sonia loves to write and has resolved to dedicate her life to revealing how easy and important it is to be happier, stronger and fitter each day. Follow her daily pursuits at FitFoodieDiary or on Instagram.

With anxiety and depression levels rising in kids, mindfulness and meditation are increasingly being employed by parents. Here are 7 of the best mindfulness books for kids on the market that can instill these two essential life skills, keeping children calm and centered. By Ann Vrlak. Would you like to introduce mindfulness to your child, but aren’t sure where to start? It has been wonderful to see the explosion of interest in mindfulness for kids – in schools and in homes all around the world. There is a growing body of research that shows how simple mindfulness practices – tailored for children – can help kids learn invaluable skills they can use their whole lives, like how to: Self-regulate emotions Improve self-esteem and confidence Relax when you’re stressed or worried Concentrate better Treat yourself with kindness and compassion Increase empathy With this impressive list, it’s no surprise that schools are incorporating some form of mindfulness exercises in elementary and high school classes. Furthermore, many parents want to know how to teach mindfulness themselves, to help their children navigate everyday stresses and conflicts, and to learn tools to relax or take a pause if they feel upset. There are so many books about mindfulness for kids to choose from. I’ve done the work for you by choosing my seven absolute favorites. They’re all also five-star rated by the parents and kids I’ve recommended them to. Storybooks Storybooks are one great style of mindfulness book that explain concepts to children. Here are three of the best that are currently on the market: 1. Moody Cow Meditates | Kerry Lee MacLean Peter the calf has a “stupid, rotten day when everything went wrong.” He woke up with a bad dream, his sister drew on his skateboard, and the day just goes downhill from there. He is so upset and angry his sister names him “Moody Cow” which just makes things worse! Moody Cow Meditates is one of the best mindfulness books for kids because it describes the kind of day we all can have when nothing goes right and no one seems to be on your side! Peter visits his wise grandfather who shows him how to create a mindfulness jar: he adds sparkles to a jar of clear water for each angry thought he has and then shakes the jar. RELATED: The benefits of meditation for kids His grandfather explains how the agitated, cloudy water is like his agitated mind, full of thoughts. And as the water settles down, and the sparkles settle, it’s just like when you calm down again and can see things more clearly. Grandfather gently takes Peter through the mindfulness jar practice from his upset mind to a quiet place. 2. Visiting Feelings | Lauren Rubenstein Visiting Feelings is a book that also looks at how to be with emotions in a healthy way. Rubenstein encourages kids, through gorgeous illustrations, to treat their feelings like unexpected visitors. How tall is this feeling? What colour and shape is it? Is it warm or cold? By asking these kinds of questions, the author is encouraging kids to observe feelings at arm’s length, to be curious about them, instead of thinking that something is wrong. Make friends with feelings, she says, and listen to what they have to tell you. “There is a growing body of research that shows how simple mindfulness practices – tailored for children – can help kids learn invaluable skills they can use their whole lives.” Rubenstein also gently asks kids to notice where feelings live in their body – another traditional adult practice of noticing the physical qualities of an emotion – like a knot in your stomach, that give you a concrete place to begin exploring the emotion. There is a “Note to Parents” in the back of the book about emotional intelligence and tips on how to help children link mindfulness to emotions. 3. Take the time: Mindfulness for Kids | Maud Roegiers This lovely mindfulness book for children has a powerful message: if you’re feeling bad, do something small to feel better. Be with your friends, feel the cold air on your cheeks, or do something you love. And, whether we’re five years old or 50, when we’re feeling sad or upset, we often feel like we have to fix something or do something complicated to feel better. Focusing instead on small, simple pleasures that are always around us if we take time to look, is a tool of health and well-being your child can nurture throughout their life. The beautiful, heartwarming illustrations in Take the Time... bring the story to life. 4. Zen Shorts | Jon J. Muth This is one of Muth’s delightful mindfulness for children books that features the wise panda, Stillwater. Zen Shorts begins with a large, panda suddenly appearing in Michael, Karl and Addy’s back yard. He’s a mysterious fellow and a storyteller who soon has the children entranced with classic meditation stories put into kids’ language: someone who shows compassion for a robber and the man who says, “Maybe” to a whole series of life events that everyone assumes are “good” or “bad.” Kids also love Zen Happiness, Zen Socks and other books by Muth. Books with mindfulness exercises for kids Each of the following great books has sections explaining the principles and benefits of mindfulness for children, teaching tips and lots of specific mindfulness exercises you can do with your children. 5. Planting Seeds: Practicing Mindfulness with Children | Thich Nhat Hanh and the Plum Village Community This book by beloved Buddhist teacher Thich Nhat Hanh shines with love and respect for children, and how to nurture their growth through simple meditation practices. Hanh talks about meditation as a way to plant the seeds of self-awareness, relaxing through breath, recognizing your connection to nature, nurture compassion and community, embrace emotions – and more. All the ideas are accompanied by simple, engaging exercises kids can do on their own or with a guide – and many are included on an accompanying CD. RELATED: Thich Nhat Hanh – his life in quotes and teachings My personal favourite to do with kids is the Pebble Meditation. Kids gather four pebbles to represent a flower, mountain, still water and space, and use them in a meditation to emulate each of their qualities: “Fresh like a flower... Solid like a mountain.” This meditation, and others, builds on kids’ imagination and ability to embody positive and resilient states. Every chapter in Planting Seeds is grounded in caring for children, and encouragement to explore their inner and outer world with kindness for their own sake and the sake of all beings. 6. Child’s Mind: Mindfulness Practices to Help Our Children be More Focused, Calm and Relaxed | Christopher Willard This is an excellent mindfulness book for kids if you would like to know more about the psychological applications of meditation for children – for everyday challenges and for kids who are troubled by chronic anxiety or depression. Willard is a clinical psychologist and psychotherapist with a deep experience with mindfulness and meditation. He talks about meditation’s effect on kids’ mental, emotional and physical well-being in easy to understand language, and how parents can use mindfulness to help their children overcome difficulties. “ If you’d like to explore the world of mindfulness books for kids, all of these titles will give you and your child an experienced, caring and fun place to start.” Child's Mind features a creative range of mindfulness practices like The Universe in a Raisin; Hugging Meditation; Everyday Mindfulness, Everyday Games; and, Homesickness Meditation. All encourage kids to mindfully and gently explore what’s happening for them. I use many of his exercises with my young mindfulness students for the balanced way he shows kids how to accept and honour their own feelings, and how to do mindful things to feel better. RELATED: The benefits of meditation for kids 7. Sitting Still Like a Frog: Mindfulness Exercises for Kids (and Their Parents) | Eline Snel If you’d like a short, approachable book about why mindfulness is a great skill for kids, read Sitting Still Like a Frog. Each chapter in the book explains a mindfulness concept or skill, and includes one or two exercises for kids to practice with. Some of the concepts Snel explains are Training your Attention Muscle, Weathering the Storm Inside and The Conveyor Belt of Worries. She uses imagery to great effect to help kids relate to their feelings, thoughts and experiences in entertaining, mindful ways. RELATED: 6 secrets to raising happy children Snel also includes short exercises parents can use with everyday routines, like meals and bedtime. She makes all the concepts fun and has a warm way of communicating. This book also includes a CD with many of the best guided practices. There is also an accompanying activity book with 75 mindfulness games. The takeaway: best mindfulness books for kids So, if you’d like to explore the world of mindfulness books for kids, all of these titles will give you and your child an experienced, caring and fun place to start. The books don’t just talk about mindfulness, they embody mindfulness in the way they talk about children and their needs, and the way they talk to kids in the stories and exercises. Most of these authors have more than one book, so you and your family can enjoy them together for a long time to come. • Main image: shutterstock/Tatiana Bobkova happiness.com | The fine art of being: learn, practise, share Are you a happiness.com member? Sign up for free now to: ■ enjoy our happiness magazine with practical life tips ■ share and support in our happiness forum ■ learn with free online classes in our happiness Academy Meditation | Family activities Written by Ann Vrlak Ann Vrlak is Founder of OneSelf Meditation and a meditation practitioner for over 25 years. She’s a Certified Meditation Teacher for adults and for children (the best job ever!). She loves to share how the perspective and practice of meditation can support people with their everyday stresses and on their journey of self-discovery.

There were plenty of feel-good health and environmental stories in the press during May. Ed Gould rounds up his Top Ten from the past month to uplift and inspire. May marked a change in the fortunes of many countries around the world. Although significant conflict and virus control remained a challenge in many places, there was also a lot of progress being made in others. Indeed, May was full of feel-good news stories. Here are our Top 10 highlights from the past month... 1.Recycling water from air-conditioning units possible As water resources become scarcer, cities in the driest places on the planet will find it harder to replenish resources. However, a new technology has been developed that's able to harvest the water in air-conditioning systems and use what would otherwise simply go to waste. According to Bloomberg, air-conditioning plants are already giving up their water for low-value processes, such as flushing the toilet. The collected water is also being used to water plants and it's hoped that one day the reprocessed water could be made safe to drink. 2. Mindfulness interventions help treat ADHD Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is an increasingly diagnosed condition among children but there aren't many treatment pathways. Where medications are offered, a significant minority of youngsters see only limited benefits. However, a report published in News Medical in May stated that mindfulness parenting training can make a big difference. A control group of eight to 16-year-olds were compared with a group who undertook mindfulness-based intervention programmes and one third were seen to enjoy positive effects, according to the research group based at the Radboud University Medical Centre in the Netherlands. RELATED: 7 mindfulness tips for staying engaged 3. Algae used to treat blindness A new medical procedure using algae has been developed to help restore the sight of people with a form of blindness. According to a report by the BBC, a blind man had proteins restored in his retina that had been grown using nothing more than algae. The report stated that the man realised the therapy was starting to work when he was first able to detect the highly contrasting stripes of a pedestrian crossing. The man, from France, lived with a condition called retinitis pigmentosa, and it's now hoped that others with the disorder will be able to be treated using a similar technique. Algae is being used to treat blindness shutterstock/Chokniti Khongchum 4. Ocean plastics used for vessel's fuel The Manta is a yacht like no other. This catamaran seeks out the many pieces of plastic waste that are floating around in the world's oceans and scoops them up. However, this vessel is much more than a clearing up machine, as reported by Intelligent Living magazine. It also uses the energy that is embedded in the plastic it captures as a fuel source so it can continue its operations. The yacht is the brainchild of Yvan Bourgnon, a former competitive sailor, who reckons the vessel can collect over 2.5 tonnes of waste plastic per hour! RELATED: Sailing the world – 5 life lessons I've learned 5. Land protection targets on track globally According to a report in the Guardian, the world is on track to meet its commitment to safeguarding the land and inland waterways it committed to under the UN Environment Programme. A report published by the International Union for Conservation of Nature stated that 17 per cent of land and inland water ecosystems of the world along with about eight per cent of marine areas had been placed into formally protected areas. The report suggested that a landmass the size of Russia was conserved thanks to the international agreement to commit to more protection. 6. Extinct giant river otter rediscovered In a world of diminishing biodiversity, rediscovering species that were thought to have perished is a joy. To find a large mammal surviving in its natural habitat is even more exciting. And this is exactly what happened in May when a kayaker found a giant river otter hunting in Argentina's El Impenetrable National Park. Sebastián Di Martino, director of conservation at Fundación Rewilding Argentina, said that he had initially been sceptical about the discovery but now simply felt happiness. And rightly so. The thought-to-be-extinct creature had not been seen for over 30 years. A giant river otter shutterstock/OSTILL is Franck Camhi 7. Wind turbine blades soon to be fully recyclable Wind turbines may help with the reduction of human reliance on fossil fuels but this does not mean that they don't come with a carbon cost themselves. One of the main drawbacks has been the blades themselves, which have always contained some elements that cannot be recycled when they come to the end of their working lives. However, the world's largest blade manufacturer, Vestas, has announced that it will soon bring a fully recyclable blade on stream for its clients. The move will make wind-powered electricity even greener than it already is. 8. Vaccine breakthrough in the fight against malaria The world may have become accustomed to Covid vaccines in the recent past but one of the biggest human killers – malaria – remains untreatable by vaccines. However, a team of researchers at Oxford University – the same behind the Covid-19 vaccine being made by Astra-Zeneca – has come up with a treatment for malaria which it thinks is about 77 per cent effective. That's over twice as effective as Mosquirix, the only other approved preventative treatment for the disease. 9. Record for renewable energy set in UK The British Isles constitute a windy location which makes the UK an ideal place for both on-shore and off-shore generation. The first Monday in May, a bank holiday, saw the greatest amount of electricity ever being produced from renewable sources in the country. In fact, wind power alone accounted for a peak of 17.6 gigawatts at one point, which is about half the requirement for England, Scotland and Wales among households and industry, according to a report by Sky News. A wind farm in Lincolnshire, UK shutterstock/John-Kelly 10. 3-D printing technology may help save rare tropical trees It's been around for a while now, but 3-D printing is rarely considered as a technology that can save natural resources. However, a report in TCT magazine suggests otherwise. It states that a new printing technique has been developed whereby some natural hardwoods, such as teak, can be made in a totally sustainable fashion without the need to chop down rare or tropical trees. The system, known as Forust, replicates the grains of natural hardwoods such that they are supposedly indistinguishable from the real thing. • happiness.com | The fine art of being: learn, practise, share Are you a happiness.com member yet? Sign up for free now to enjoy: ■ our happiness magazine with practical life tips ■ share and support others in our happiness forum ■ develop with free online classes in our happiness Academy Biotechnology | Nature | Biology | Positive news Written by Ed Gould Ed Gould is a UK-based journalist and practitioner of Reiki.

Managing unpleasant symptoms and changing your lifestyle drastically – living with a chronic illness is challenging. But it needn't break you down. James Frew explains how mindfulness and meditation has given him the resilience to thrive while living with a long-term condition... All it took was a fall in the middle of a road to realize something was wrong. It was July 2013 and I'd just returned from a month-long overseas business trip. I was tired, unable to think properly, and was regularly physically sick after eating. But it wasn't until that moment on the road outside the office that I became convinced this wasn't just a severe case of jet lag. The following day, I visited the doctor and so started months of tests, false starts, and inconclusive assessments. It wasn't until January 2014 that I received an official diagnosis of Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS). All the while, I'd been away from work, barely able to leave the house, with my symptoms worsening. Although there was relief in the diagnosis – finally having a name for the ensemble of seemingly unrelated symptoms – it was much more the beginning than the end. Truthfully, it was the start of living with chronic illness and pain. Learning to live with Dysautonomia A lot of people would say that living with a chronic illness is quite an isolating experience. That's certainly how I felt, especially in the first few years of my condition. The symptoms of POTS, a form of dysautonomia or autonomic dysfunction, vary significantly between individuals and fluctuate on a daily and sometimes even hourly basis. For me, unpredictability was, and still is, one of the most demanding challenges to overcome. When in the middle of an extreme flare-up of symptoms, it's difficult to communicate to others how you're feeling, particularly when suffering from the cloudiness of brain fog. For many years, I couldn't work because of the debilitating cognitive effect this had on me. Some people say it feels like having cotton wool in your brain; you're aware there's something there, but it's hard to find clarity in it. James lives with the chronic condition POTS This isn't uncommon for POTS patients, either. According to Dr. Lesley Kavi, Visiting Professor at Birmingham City University and Trustee and Chair of the charity PoTS UK, the most debilitating symptom of POTS “varies very much from person to person depending on the set of symptoms they have. I read many comments that say the brain fog is the worst, but not everyone says this.” This is typical when discussing chronic illnesses. Like the common cold, some illnesses are short-lived and unpleasant; chronic illnesses, though, don't have a known end-point. Although there's no way to say for sure, I'll probably experience POTS symptoms for the foreseeable future. While some people find their condition naturally resolves, Dr. Kavi notes that many, “especially those with inherited conditions that cause [POTS], can have symptoms long-term.” Living with chronic illness Chronic illnesses are generally defined as long-term conditions with no cure. However, there's no one accepted definition of a chronic illness, so its hard to get an accurate measure of how many people suffer with a long-term condition. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) opts for the term chronic disease, and estimates that six in ten adults have a long-term condition which affects their daily lives. Often, the symptoms are wide-ranging, diverse and unpredictable. As a result, living with chronic illness can sometimes feel like a continual trial. For every positive moment, there are a handful of upsetting, distressing, or frustrating ones. Following the onset of my illness, I found it particularly hard to come to terms with how different my life now was. Even simple things like going out of the house require effort and preparation. “Often, the symptoms are wide-ranging, diverse and unpredictable. As a result, living with chronic illness can sometimes feel like a continual trial. For every positive moment, there are a handful of distressing or frustrating ones.” It's not helped that I tend not to look any different outwardly. The effects of POTS are primarily internal, like a sudden increased heart rate, low blood pressure and digestive issues. This type of condition is usually referred to as an invisible illness, a common trait of many chronic illnesses. As a previously well man in his early 20s when POTS first took hold, most people couldn't see the suffering I was going through. As a result, I was nervous about going out and anxious about how people may interact with me if I need to sit down on a busy bus or train or use an accessible toilet. Most days, I still feel this way. I know I tend to shy away from spontaneity, preferring low-key plans instead. But after so many years living with chronic illness, I've become used to accepting my difference. Meditation to calm anxious thoughts There wasn't an overnight transformation; I didn't wake up one morning comfortable in my skin and ready to take on the world. It was a gradual process over many years, continually chipping away at the biases and thought patterns from before. But I didn't do it alone, either. After reading about a meditation app online, I ignored my misplaced skepticism about the practice and gave it a go. RELATED: Do mindfulness apps work? In the years since, I've spent at least ten minutes a day training my mind to be comfortable with feelings and learning that I am not my thoughts and I'm not defined by my condition. Where I used to spend long periods worrying about what people may think, I've come to accept that these are the musings of an anxious mind concerned about a future that may never happen. This regular practice has also helped me feel connected to others, even while physically alone. James' 'Be more kind' tattoo Although you might never meet them in person, the internet offers a way to connect with other people living with chronic illness around the world. I've spent many hours in the /r/POTS subreddit chatting, learning, and supporting the newly-diagnosed. In fact, the benefits of this type of interaction were confirmed by a 2016 study published in Qualitative Health Research, which found that online communities strengthened relationships, exchanged knowledge, and raised awareness about specific illnesses. Finding ways to manage chronic pain My meditation practice meant that I could focus on the present moment, rather than the future or the past. But is also helped manage the chronic pain caused by POTS in combination with Ehlers Danlos Syndrome (EDS), a connective tissue disorder. The pain still exists, of course, but it is my reaction to it that has changed. Chronic pain is a highly challenging condition to live with. My personal experience hasn't been overwhelming, but an underlying current of long-term pain. RELATED: 9 science-backed benefits of meditation However, it can be extremely debilitating for many people suffering from it. As the mechanisms behind this agony aren't yet understood, treatments are variable, and some find them ineffective. Still, there's growing evidence, like the meta-study published in the Annals of Behavioral Medicine in 2016, that a regular meditation practice can help make living with chronic illness and long-term pain more manageable. Coping with mental health and chronic illness Meditation is just one technique I've come across to ease the difficulty of living with chronic illness. As Dr. Kavi points out, "it can be a challenge to cope with the fluctuations; some people don't need help with [their] mental health, some gain benefit from psychological therapies including CBT [or] mindfulness, and some have medication." Although mindfulness has been the most successful for me, it didn't happen in isolation. Not long after my diagnosis, I was prescribed SSRI-based anti-depressants to help manage my mental health. Alongside this, I took a Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) course and followed that up with counseling. “There's growing evidence that a regular meditation practice can help make living with chronic illness and long-term pain more manageable.” Everyone's experience is different, but the key to living with chronic illness is to do what's right for you. These therapies and techniques were effective for me, but they might not be for everyone. You may find it's worth exploring your options with a healthcare professional. Working around your condition In an alternative world, we might be able to spend our days living with chronic illness, managing experiences at our own pace. But in many cases, there's still a financial imperative to work. Alongside this, after a few years of relative monotony, I wanted to have something practical to achieve. But, given the unpredictable, long-term nature of chronic illness, most don't feel able to return to full-time employment in an office or workplace away from home. There are alternatives to explore, though, even if they are less conventional. James is proof you can thrive with a chronic illness Some people turn their hobbies into a part-time business, allowing them to bolster their finances without the pressure of working all the time. This was the approach that led to my return to work. Writing started as a hobby before becoming part-time job, and then, years later, a career. But that's far from the only way to earn while living with chronic illness. If you do feel comfortable returning to an office, it's worth finding an understanding employer to accommodate the adjustments you need. The important thing is to do what you feel comfortable with, and at your own pace. Over the years, my illness has given me a chance to connect with my body in a way I'd never imagined. While the struggle is real, I've come to accept that this is who I am now, and in many ways, I'm better for it. After almost a decade, living with chronic illness is still a work in progress. My experience evolves each day, but so do I. For every setback, I have an opportunity to learn from it. For each day spent recovering from the onset of symptoms, I find comfort knowing that tomorrow may be different. happiness.com | The fine art of being: learn, practise, share Are you a happiness.com member yet? Sign up for free now to enjoy: ■ our happiness magazine with practical life tips ■ share and support others in our happiness forum ■ develop with free online classes in our happiness Academy Resilience | Acceptance | Courage Written by James Frew James is a freelance writer based in the UK with a focus on consumer technology, mental health, well-being, and sustainability. When not writing, he's usually listening to podcasts, enjoying music, or going for a walk. You can find all his work on Campsite.bio and follow him on Twitter.

If you're struggling to move forward and transform your life as you hope, these 11 practical life coaching tools and techniques from holistic life coach Rebecca Kirk can help. Incorporate these methods into your daily life to gain perspective and work more clearly towards your goals. Life coaching is about creating a transformation which brings life back into balance. Life coaches use a set of tools and techniques to pinpoint their client’s goals and to empower them to achieve those goals by providing direction, support and challenge. Life coaches work on the basis that the client has the answers within themselves. Whilst there is a huge benefit in working directly with a life coach to enable you to make a transformation, there are also many life coaching tools and techniques which you can use yourself, without guidance. By incorporating some of these methods into your daily life, you'll be taking significant steps towards achieving your dreams and desires. Life coaching techniques explored Here are 11 life coaching techniques and tools which I incorporate into my life coaching practice and recommend for you to try. 1. SMART goal setting Goal setting is a fundamental life coaching tool. As the well-known saying goes, “If you don’t know exactly where you’re going, how will you know when you get there?” Setting goals forces you to get really clear on what it is you want. And with clarity comes magic. A SMART goal is specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-bound. Without those aspects, goals can be too lofty to be meaningful and they can easily drift into the future. SMART is the only acronym I have happily taken with me from my days in the corporate world – it just works! 2. Visualization Our minds are powerful beyond belief. Instead of focusing them on the things you don’t want, start to use your mind to imagine what you do want. This will help lift you out of your current reality. A really powerful life coaching technique is visualization. There are many scientific studies – such as this University of Chicago one from 1996 – which prove visualization is an effective strategy, especially within the sporting arena. RELATED: Visualization meditation – how to practise it Think of yourself in a particular situation and imagine exactly the outcome you desire. For example, if you’re feeling some anxiety about giving a work presentation, imagine how you will feel before, during and after and taking positive feedback from your audience. Keep visualizing this until the day you actually have to give the presentation. Alternatively, you can also get creative by making a vision board which brings your goals to life and serves as a daily reminder of the transformation you want to make. Visualizing success can put you on the path to achieving it shutterstock/Triff 3. Taking a helicopter view It can be easy to get lost in the details of your current reality. This can also keep you stuck and create a low vibration. A really simple but effective life coaching technique is to imagine that you’re up high in a helicopter, looking down on your life. From this vantage point, very often it can help you see the bigger picture of why things might be challenging for you at the moment and how it could serve as a catalyst or a stepping stone towards a positive transformation. 4. Creating headspace The clarity that people seek to enable them to make a transformation is rarely found in a cluttered, over-busy mind. For clarity to emerge, your head needs space. As a holistic life coach, this method forms the basis for much of my approach. Space can be created in a number of ways, such as meditation, mindfulness or simply going for a walk in nature. I often recommend to clients that they give themselves permission to take a week off from thinking about or working towards their goal. Although it may seem counter-intuitive, it’s amazing what messages can come through! 5. Connecting with your intuition This is a big one. Very often, we look for answers outside of ourselves. We look for validation of our ideas, we look for others’ approval before making a change, and we look for total reassurance that we are making the right decision. This is one of the biggest causes of inertia. “A really powerful life coaching technique is visualization. There are many scientific studies which prove visualization as an effective strategy.” However, you have constant access to a ‘superpower’ to help you – your intuition (that inner knowing, that gentle nudge, that gut feeling). Encouraging clients to be guided by their heart first and then letting their head kick in is a life coaching technique I use with every client. As the Einstein quote says, “The intuitive mind is a faithful gift and the rational mind is a faithful servant. We have created a society that honours the servant and has forgotten the gift”. Try connecting more with your intuitive mind first. 6. Journaling This life coaching tool is something I encourage with all my clients. Journaling is a way of emptying the mind of unhelpful or destructive thoughts. It’s a way of making sense of them so that they can be released to make room for more positive, empowering thoughts. It also gives you an outlet to explore any new ideas so they can start taking root. RELATED: Future self journaling Journaling can be done at a set time each day, perhaps for five or ten minutes before bed or first thing in the morning. Alternatively, keep the journal with you at all times and use it to capture thoughts, feelings and ideas as and when they arise. I recommend that you write freely, from the heart, and with no judgement about what comes out. Journaling is what I refer to as the closest thing to a therapist – in paper form! Journaling gets new ideas onto paper and out of your head 7. Shushing the ‘shoulds’ This one is not so much a life coaching tool as it is a mantra for living a more authentic life. When I was on a career break in Australia back in 2010, a yoga teacher shared this expression with me and it stuck. So often, we make choices based on what we feel we ‘should’ be doing, saying, thinking or feeling – according to our family, friends, employers or society at large. The next time the word ‘should’ comes into your head or out of your mouth, I recommend a little alarm bell ringing to remind you to check in with yourself. Is there a more authentic, aligned choice you could make? 8. Gratitude When we focus on what we already have, we attract more of it. Gratitude is another simple life coaching tool which brings profound results. Nothing shifts your vibration quicker than the practice of gratitude. It can be done anytime and anywhere. And there is always something we can be grateful for, even if we want to change a situation. Very often, clients express to me how much they hate their job or employer. I recently asked a client what she might be grateful for about the job she was desperate to escape from. After the initial shock at my question had worn off, she cited earning money (enabling her to travel) and enjoying banter with colleagues. Your current challenge itself is something you could potentially show gratitude for, especially if you are able to view it as a catalyst for change. 9. Affirmations Affirmations are positive statements you repeat to yourself which enable you to overcome limiting beliefs and self-sabotaging patterns. You are using affirmations all the time whether you realise it or not, with the things you say to yourself, often at a subconscious level. “When we focus on what we already have, we attract more of it. Gratitude is another simple life coaching tool which brings profound results.” This practice is about consciously choosing the things you say to yourself in support of the changes you wish to create. For example, if you had a limiting belief that you should always put everyone else’s needs ahead of your own, you can turn that around into an affirmation which states, “I give myself permission to tend to my own needs”. RELATED: How to stop self-sabotage – 5 techniques to try 10. Calling on your inner mentor When clients are feeling stuck or lacking confidence, often they have a loud inner critic. If you also identify with that critical, negative voice in your head, the life coaching technique I recommend here is to access your inner mentor. Just imagine yourself in 30 years time and that you are looking at your current self from that new vantage point. What messages would you give your current self? Realise that this is not your older self but actually the wiser part of your current self – your inner mentor. Access your inner mentor whenever you doubt yourself or your inner critic is getting loud! 11. Anchoring This final life coaching tool comes from NLP and gives you a quick way to generate a more positive association with a particular topic or goal through the use of an external trigger. For instance, I had one client who was feeling very low and joyless and had lost his spark. I suggested he dug out an old photo of the last time he felt joyful and at peace. He found a photo of himself at the 2018 Winter Olympics and it reignited a feeling of passion and the possibility of reconnecting with his true self. What photo or object has a particularly positive association which could serve as an anchor for you? Takeaway: life coaching tools So, there we have it, a selection of life coaching tools and techniques which are easy to access, simple to use and bring about powerful results. Have a go at using one of them over the next seven days, beginning with the one you feel most drawn to and see what changes for you. • Main image: shutterstock/Rawpixel.com happiness.com | The fine art of being: learn, practise, share Are you a happiness.com member? Sign up for free to enjoy: ■ our happiness magazine with practical life tips ■ sharing and supporting others in our happiness forum ■ developing with free online classes in our Academy Authenticity | Letting go | Motivation Written by Rebecca Kirk Rebecca Kirk is a holistic life and career coach. She helps people who are feeling stuck, out of balance or unfulfilled discover the clarity and belief to choose a path which brings them greater purpose, well-being and joy. She uses an approach which encompasses body, mind and spirit to create a deeper and more lasting transformation.

There have been plenty of feel-good health and environmental stories in the press during April. Ed Gould rounds up his Top Ten from the past month to uplift and inspire. April started to feel as though spring had truly arrived in many parts of the world. Despite the many problems the global population faces, this April was full of optimistic stories and tales of human endeavour. What were some of the best news items that didn't necessarily get the attention they deserved? 1. Gardening reduces stress levels, according to a new study According to a report by Sky News, gardening even just once or twice a week reduces feelings of anxiety and stress. The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) commissioned a survey to find out how much gardening was found to relax people. As most gardeners know already, it can be an absorbing hobby and relieve stress. However, the survey discovered that the impact is more dramatic than many had previously thought. In fact, the findings from the RHS suggest that gardening is just a good a stress buster as running or cycling vigorously. RELATED: The 7 mental health benefits of gardening 2. Reefs to be better protected thanks to ecologically sound sunscreen One of the principal ingredients in sunscreens is zinc oxide. This compound is harmless to skin and also offers a high level of protection against the sun's powerful rays. However, it is often derived from natural sources found within coastal reefs. Thankfully, research at Imperial College London and Sheffield University has been ongoing to synthesize the production of zinc oxide. In April, these universities jointly announced they had developed a new technique which means this is now possible, helping to safeguard delicate marine environments for years to come. 3. Peer anxiety drops away in middle age, study finds A British survey of some 2,000 people found that people are much less anxious about what others think of them, on average, when they reach the age of 46. The study results were reported in the Independent and demonstrated that British people were able to stop being so concerned about how others perceived them by this age, suggesting that they were more content in themselves. In fact, 72 per cent of the people who responded to the survey reported that they were unapologetically themselves in their mid-40s without being held back by feeling they needed to conform so much. Brits are more self-assured in their 40s shutterstock/Olena Yakobchuk 4. Microplastic trap could help to clean up waterways Rivers, lakes and oceans all suffer when plastics are dumped in them. As well as taking a long time to break down, plastic products often release tiny particles as they do so. In turn, these are often ingested by marine life and therefore enter the food chain. New Atlas reported in April that a team at Hong Kong Polytechnic University had shown that a common bacterium can be used in a biofilm to capture these microplastics. It's hoped that the trapped material can be recycled – just like conventional plastic. 5. Traumatic memories can be weakened by new therapeutic model Science Daily reported in April that research in Texas was helping patients to overcome their most traumatic memories in a new way. The idea, as published in the academic journal Nature Neuroscience, is to reactivate hurtful or problematic memories so that therapists can either reframe them or help them to disappear completely. The approach helps to eradicate deep-seated fears which can already be treated at the moment but which often bubble up back to the surface over time. It's hoped that the method will create a more effective treatment pathway for those living with conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder. 6. New rainforest natural reserve formed in Belize A 230,000-acre rainforest site in the central American country of Belize has been turned into a natural reserve thanks to a coalition of international organisations and local groups. It's hoped that the privately managed area of rainforest will serve to protect unknown numbers of species including the area's top predator – the jaguar. The Rio Bravo Conservation Management Area is part of a rainforest that stretches into Mexico and Guatemala, as well as covering much of Belize. The main aim of the project is to protect the area from deforestation, according to Science Times. A toucan in a Belize rainforest shutterstock/Ondrej Prosicky 7. Mindfulness interventions among students reduce stress, trial finds According to PsyPost, even relatively short mindfulness interventions among students will be of benefit to them in coping with psychological stresses. A trial among undergraduates found that brief periods of meditation were useful for all types of students. The trial focussed on Brazilian students and was published in the BMC Psychology journal. The study centred on students with no prior experience in mindfulness or meditation and studied their responses to 30-minute guided mindful meditations over a short, three-day period. RELATED: Mindfulness vs meditation – what's the difference 8. Healthy guts improve wisdom and fend off loneliness Gut health has long been known to have a physiological effect on people, perhaps impacting positively on their immune system. However, an interesting new study conducted by scientists at the University of San Diego has discovered that people with good gut health – a diverse amount of healthy bacteria in their digestive tracts – will often feel they are wiser, something that tends to present as feeling more satisfied in their life. Conversely, people who have poor gut health will often feel more socially isolated. It's thought that microbial diversity in the gut can have a profound effect on people's brain physiology. RELATED: How to heal your gut – 11 ideas to restore belly health 9. Chile to begin exporting green energy Although many countries have greener electrical production today than ever before, some – like Chile – are going even further. While major economies tend to have a mix of fossil fuel and renewable energy, Chile is already highly advanced with solar-powered technology, largely thanks to the amount of clear sunlight the country receives. According to the Financial Times, this has led the nation's energy companies to start thinking about how it might export its green energy to neighbours. Chile hit its 2025 target for renewable energy production five years early in 2020, and is still investing heavily in solar power, showing what can be achieved in a relatively short period of time. Thousands of solar panels in Chile's Atacama Desert shutterstock/abriendomundo 10. HIV vaccine is on the horizon The world has become accustomed to virology and vaccine efficacy in recent months but for decades there has been no vaccine available for HIV. However, the latest research is showing promising signs that a vaccine for HIV may soon become a reality. The International AIDS Vaccine Initiative and the Scripps Research Institute in California have been working on one, according to ABC News. At the clinical trial stage, the vaccine is showing all the signs of success – early findings indicating that it could be successful in as many as 97 per cent of cases. The trial is ongoing but researchers are hopeful that a breakthrough may occur when their final data is published for review. • happiness.com | The fine art of being: learn, practise, share Are you a happiness.com member yet? Sign up for free now to enjoy: ■ our happiness magazine with practical life tips ■ share and support others in our happiness forum ■ develop with free online classes in our happiness Academy Biotechnology | Nature | Biology | Positive news Written by Ed Gould Ed Gould is a UK-based journalist and practitioner of Reiki.

Are you a perfectionist? Always seem to be busy? Do you find it hard to say ‘no’? Then you may be living with high functioning anxiety. Psychologist Stanislava Puač Jovanović explains how the overachievers and overthinkers of this world can learn techniques to manage this chronic state of anxiety. High functioning anxiety is not an official diagnosis. It is a term popularly used to describe a state of chronic anxiety that often goes undiagnosed – and unnoticed. However, that does not mean that it is not a real thing. It is, and it can negatively affect your physical health and mental well-being. The hallmark of high functioning anxiety is the fighting mode of those affected. They are many of the overachievers, overdoers, overthinkers of the world. They are people who are white-knuckling their way through anxiety every day of their lives. In this article, we will look into what characterises people who describe themselves as having high functioning anxiety and how to deal with it. What is high functioning anxiety? A quote fit to start our discussion on what high functioning anxiety is, is one by Alain de Botton, a contemporary British philosopher: “The largest part of what we call ‘personality’ is determined by how we’ve opted to defend ourselves against anxiety and sadness.” High functioning anxiety is not recognised as an official diagnosis in the current revisions of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) or the International Classification of Diseases (ICD). People who are using the term define it, generally, as being anxious but pushing through the feeling by staying busy and productive. In other words, it means hiding anxiety behind being an overachiever in various areas of life. Diagnostic categories are known to change, For example, homosexuality was once considered a disorder. Other categories were amended, deleted, added, adapted, recategorised, amended again. Such changes to mental disorders’ official classifications follow new findings, observations from psychotherapy practice, and political and societal changes. Anxiety spectrum disorders, in specific, underwent substantial modifications between the DSM-IV and DSM-V. Being over-busy is a sign of high functioning anxiety shutterstock/Drazen Zigic Therefore, high functioning anxiety can be considered a real issue, even though it might not be categorised as a separate disorder at the moment. In other words, it may appear in one of the following revisions of psychiatric manuals. The experience of being anxious, hiding it, and functioning on high (top, over-the-top) performance levels is real – and psychiatry might look into that in some of the future changes to the classifications. High functioning anxiety statistics So, how many people have high functioning anxiety? That is incredibly difficult to estimate. The first problem is that it is not a diagnosis of which institutions keep track of, as already explained. Secondly, anxiety in itself is severely underdiagnosed – and we can assume that people with high functioning anxiety are particularly unlikely to seek help for it. Indeed, one study determined that, in adolescents, only one-third of those affected by anxiety sought any form of professional help. According to another study, the lifetime prevalence of anxiety disorders is approximately 30 per cent. Regardless, they remain underdiagnosed, misdiagnosed and improperly treated. “The hallmark of high functioning anxiety is the fighting mode of those affected. They are many of the overachievers, overdoers, overthinkers of the world.” Anxiety is far more prevalent in high-income countries, and it disproportionally affects women. Considering these statistics, it becomes clear why there is so much talk about high functioning anxiety lately. The pressure of living in the modern-day Western world with ever-mounting roles and obligations results in heightened anxiety. People, however, often do not seek treatment or receive adequate help. Some keep muscling their way through the demands, the pace of life and the non-stop urge to keep going forward. Symptoms of high functioning anxiety As there is no official category in psychiatric manuals, we must rely on other sources to determine how high functioning anxiety looks like in real life. According to the South African College of Applied Psychology, these are the five main symptoms: 1. Staying busy all the time People with high functioning anxiety are keeping themselves busy at all times. This behaviour goes beyond productivity and working on one’s goals. They have an emotional need to keep themselves occupied. Relaxation and doing nothing at all feels threatening and uncomfortable. 2. Being a perfectionist Those who know them describe people with high functioning anxiety as highly determined, ambitious, and intent on always getting things done. In other words, everything you imagine under a Type A personality. This is not surprising, given the type’s association with anxiety. 3. Poor sleep Same as with generalised anxiety disorder, people with high functioning anxiety often have sleep disturbances. They can have difficulties falling or staying asleep. On the other hand, when they manage to get a bit of shut-eye, it is a fidgety sleep that brings little rest. Excessive working in overachievers can lead to poor sleep 4. Inability to say “No” Because of their need to be liked and acknowledged, those living with a high functioning form of anxiety are often unable to decline a request. They profoundly fear disappointing others. 5. Numbing behaviour Some people affected by high functioning anxiety try to numb the apprehension they feel. It can be a slightly more adaptive option, like exercise. However, often it is the straightforward unhealthy choice, such as excessive use of alcohol, psychoactive substances or overeating. Potential positives From one point of view, one that considers objective achievements, high functioning anxiety might come with benefits. The “trademark” of people affected by it is their high productivity. It is also one of the reasons why many are reluctant to seek professional help. If you think that you have high functioning anxiety, you are probably happy with its outcomes, even though it burdens you emotionally and physically. You might be outgoing, passionate, active and helpful. You are probably everyone’s first pick for any team. “People with high functioning anxiety are keeping themselves busy at all times. This behaviour goes beyond productivity and working on one’s goals.” You are punctual, detail-oriented, highly efficient and effective. Being perfectly organised and orderly is your middle name. On the outside, arguably, one might be pleased about managing to cope with anxiety by overachieving. After all, one of the reasons it is not considered a disorder is that it does not affect the person’s functioning. Potential negatives At the same time, albeit high functioning, it still is anxiety. In addition to the emotional toll, there are also outcomes of pushing yourself too hard. As a result of never taking a time-out, you are highly vulnerable to burnout. Obligations tend to hoard because you cannot say “no” when someone asks you to complete a task. You could also be comparing yourself to others and feeling dissatisfied with yourself all the time. Even though you might be highly sociable, inside, you probably feel insecure and tense. Because you have a hard time relaxing, you might be unable to enjoy the moment. You rarely take a vacation and relish in the benefits of obligation-free retreats. Unhealthy habits, such as working beyond optimal limits, could get the best of you. Poor sleep quality adds to exhaustion. Proneness to excessive use of alcohol or other harmful substances to numb the anxiety further strains you. Dealing with high functioning anxiety The first thing we should emphasize is: you are not going to lose your efficiency or become less successful if you address your anxiety. Some people might be reluctant to make changes because they, understandably so, like being high-fliers. However, healing from anxiety will not rob you out of your organisation skills. It will merely make you feel less stressed and your life more balanced, healthier. Anxiety troubles different people differently. So, you should try what works best for you. We give you four possible ways to deal with your high functioning anxiety: 1. Get professional help As with any mental health disturbance, the best thing you can do is seek professional help. Anxiety can be overwhelming, even the high functioning type. Anxiety disorders should be treated with psychotherapy, pharmacotherapy, or a combination of both. Cognitive-behavioural therapy is most often used, but other forms could also work for you. 2. Meditate and learn to be mindful A recent study reviewed 25 further studies on the effects of mindfulness meditation on anxiety among college students. The findings determined that such a form of mental practice has ample positive effects. In the clinical population, that is, among people diagnosed with anxiety, mindfulness-based interventions were also very effective. RELATED: Mindfulness vs meditation – understanding the difference 3. Be your own therapist You are an expert on your state. So, use this knowledge and design a toolbox specifically for your needs. For example, if you worry too much, you can designate some time- and place-specific worry time. Findings revealed that, although counter-intuitive, a half-hour of intentional worry, when it follows certain principles, lowers anxiety levels. Consider trying self-hypnosis for anxiety. According to a recent study, hypnosis audios trained the brain to exert better physical and emotional control over one’s experiences. Maybe try and work on cognitive restructuring – a technique in which you track, analyse and alter your habitual way of thinking about events and experiences. 4. Reach out Studies show that social support is one of the most powerful ways to reduce anxiety. Open up to someone who cares about you and tell them how you have been feeling. It might come as a surprise to them. However, it is important to have people who know everything about you and encourage you when you slip. It could do wonders for your need to power through your days and maintain a superhuman persona. Being your vulnerable and insecure self in a safe environment will help you tap into a more relaxed state of existence. Defend yourself against anxiety in a healthier way Although we are exposed to the pathologisation of anxiety in media and expert literature, some philosophers consider it an inherent part of being human. From that perspective, what we are left with is a choice. It is the choice of how we will view and deal with high functioning anxiety. We invite you to redesign your pick. Opt to defend yourself from the feeling in a more balanced way, with lots of self-love and self-care. Main image: shutterstock/Roman Samborskyi happiness.com | The fine art of being: learn, practise, share Are you a happiness.com member? Sign up for free to enjoy: ■ our happiness magazine with practical life tips ■ sharing and supporting others in our happiness forum ■ developing with free online classes in our Academy Coaching | Letting go | Authenticity Written by Stanislava Puač Jovanović Stanislava Puač Jovanović has a master’s degree in psychology and works as a freelance writer and researcher in this area. Her primary focus is on questions relating to mental health, stress-management, self-development and well-being.

One seemingly simple question that most people wonder is: 'can we choose our happiness?'. Sonia Vadlamani explains how we can indeed cultivate happiness consciously by following the 10 keys to happiness. Sometimes it’s difficult for us to feel happy, be it because of the unrealistic standards of beauty and perfection we impose on ourselves, or the negativity we surround ourselves with. It could also be due to the fear of failure embedded deep within our subconscious, or our inability to form friendships and meaningful communities as we grow older. There are several unhelpful habits or tendencies we ingrain that can make us miserable and unhappy. Thankfully, researchers maintain that it’s possible to intervene and cultivate happiness through will and a proper framework. By following the 10 keys to happiness, you could maximize your potential for a lifetime full of joy and contentment. Happiness means different things to different people. The interesting news, however, is that our happiness is not set in stone. In her ground-breaking book The How of Happiness, researcher Sonja Lyubomirsky points out that while 50 per cent of our happiness is predetermined by our genetic makeup and personality traits, and 10 per cent of our personal happiness is determined by our circumstances and life experiences, about 40 per cent of our happiness can be chosen willfully by us, and depends largely on our daily actions. RELATED: Is happiness genetic? Here's what science says This goes to prove that while we cannot change our genes or predict the future, a significant portion of our happiness can be controlled by us. Unfortunately, our pursuit of happiness – as a society and on an individual level – can become very misguided. Indeed, technological advancements and the pursuit of materialism propagated by media messages may advocate happiness based on our material choices. Psychologist Barry Schwartz addresses this erroneous pursuit of happiness in his book The Paradox of Choice, wherein he points out that the plethora of choices we have available today due to surge in consumerism can do more harm than good, even resulting in conditions like anxiety and depression. The 10 keys to happiness: the ‘great dream’ “Happiness is not something ready-made. It comes from your own actions.”, articulates the Dalai Lama, who is also the patron of the charity Action for Happiness. While everyone’s idea of happiness may be different, Action for Happiness has identified 10 ‘keys’ to happiness, or practices that can consistently lead to a more fulfilling and happier life. While the first five keys to happiness described here refer to our interactions with the outside world (Great), the latter five keys to happiness describe the traits that originate within us and are determined by our attitude towards life (Dream). Outside: daily activities 1. Take care of your body There is an overwhelming amount of research that deems exercise a vital key to happiness and well-being. A Yale study conducted on over 1.2 million Americans concludes that exercise is more important for our mental health than money. You need not run a marathon to be healthy and happy – opt for an activity of your preference that suits your health goals and lifestyle. Indulge in mindful running, unplug from technology with periodic forest bathing, or simply swap escalator commutes with stairs. Keeping fit is one of the main keys to happiness shutterstock/Lordn Eating right can contribute towards better health and happiness too. A balanced diet consisting of whole grains, fresh vegetables and fruit, lean poultry and healthy fats can help you achieve your health goals faster. Opt for foods which promote gut health instead of processed or junk food options for improved mood, better metabolism and to keep disease at bay. 2. Practise mindfulness “We’re happiest when we focus on the present moment, and the least happy when the mind is wandering”, reveals researcher Matt Killingsworth. Mindfulness refers to being in a state of awareness and taking notice of the present intentionally and with complete acceptance. Studies show that practising mindfulness can help manage stress levels, in addition to activating the areas of our brains related to feeling good. Mindfulness can be developed using simple measures – start by paying attention to your feelings and thoughts as frequently throughout the day as possible. Meditation, mindful minute practices, and gratitude journaling can help in expanding awareness as well. RELATED: 7 mindfulness tips for staying engaged 3. Make learning a habit Research by Journal of Happiness Studies revealed that people who work on learning a new skill or honing an existing skill tend to experience greater happiness consistently. Interestingly, learning something new can be stressful and lower your happiness levels momentarily. However, the joy of acquiring or mastering a new skill can fulfill your need for autonomy or being self-directed, thus rewarding you with long-term happiness. “There is an overwhelming amount of research that deems exercise a vital key to happiness and well-being. A Yale study concluded that exercise is more important for our mental health than money.” Indeed, it’s important to find a suitable skill to master, or the right challenge to undertake that’ll allow you to push beyond your comfort zone yet enable you to find your flow state. Researchers also found that skills chosen by you offer better results in terms of improved self-esteem and a heightened sense of connection or ‘oneness’ with others. 4. Indulge in acts of kindness Random acts of kindness are not just beneficial for others – in fact, caring for others’ happiness activates the areas linked to trust, enjoyment and social connection in our brains as well. An experiment involving seven-day kindness activities concluded that kindness is a vital key to happiness, whether extended to people who are close to you, complete strangers or even yourself. Doing things for others can help alleviate social anxiety, improve your mood and prevent illness, thus enabling you to lead a healthy, meaningful life. 5. Make meaningful connections Human beings are social animals, and hence it’s hardly surprising when researchers found that forming meaningful connections and embracing community is one of the core values we associate with happiness. Indeed, the importance of a community as a key to happiness cannot be underestimated. In addition to the safety and support, we also derive the much-needed sense of togetherness and belonging when we find others who have the same values and interests as us. Meaningful friendships are essential for joy shutterstock/santypan Scientists agree that interacting with strangers, thus bolstering our ‘weak social ties’ also impacts our well-being positively. Take some time to connect with those who serve you coffee, your cab driver, or a friendly face you encounter during your daily strolls. Gestures like passing a casual compliment, wishing someone a good day, chatting with an elderly neighbor over a cuppa can make a world of difference to someone who’s been feeling down or struggling with loneliness. Inside: Developing the right attitude 6. Be at ease with who you are Self-acceptance forms an important cornerstone for our mental health and well-being, yet it’s a routine that we tend to practice the least, as revealed in a survey conducted by Action For Happiness. While acceptance was rated as the strongest predictor of life satisfaction and happiness amidst all the other traits and habits, only 5% of the respondents admitted to being kind to themselves and believed that they were perfect the way they were. RELATED: 12 ways to practise self-acceptance Practising acceptance as a habit can be difficult at first, but it’s possible to be good to yourself by shifting your perspective. Indeed, embracing imperfections as your unique traits and acknowledging your strengths –however insignificant they seem – can be a crucial key to happiness. 7. Set vital goals Happiness doesn’t happen spontaneously – it requires planning and action towards pursuing things that matter to us. Goal setting is an important key to happiness, since it forms the outline for the life you envision for yourself. It’s important to set goals to look forward to – not only can proactive goal setting ensure fulfilment of your life ambitions and vision, following an actionable plan and achieving timebound targets using SMART goal setting can boost self-confidence and eliminate stress and anxiety. 8. Develop resilience All of us may have faced hardships, loss and trauma along our way, and since our brains are wired for negativity bias, we tend to remember the adverse events in our lives as compared to the positive experiences. However, by changing our perspective and looking at hardships as stepping stones towards personal growth and success, we can learn to take back power every time we feel defeated by life. Indeed, building resilience can boost positive thinking, strengthen connections, and improve stress management skills. “The importance of a community as a key to happiness cannot be underestimated. In addition to the safety and support, we also derive the much-needed sense of togetherness and belonging.” In fact, researcher Dr Ann Masten describes resilience as ‘ordinary magic’ derived from everyday situations and resources, that helps us adapt better during hardships. There is surmounting scientific evidence that developing resilience as a life skill and finding ways to bounce back from adversities can contribute immensely to our well-being and happiness. 9. Cultivate a positive outlook “Just as water lilies retract when sunlight fades, so do our minds when positivity fades”, states researcher Barbara Fredrickson in her book Positivity. Indeed, research suggests that experiencing ‘upward spirals of positive emotions’ like gratitude, joy, interest etc. more often allows us to counteract the downward spirals of negative emotions like stress, jealousy etc. Gratitude journaling, smiling more often, finding ways to incorporate awe into your life are some easy ways to boost positivity. Learning a new skill can be fulfilling shutterstock/Syda Productions 10. Find meaning in your life Feeling connected to something larger than ourselves or possessing a sense of purpose in life is linked with greater life satisfaction, improved self-esteem, lasting relationships, and a more optimistic attitude. Leading a meaningful life could seem like a complicated process, but you can begin by prioritizing activities that bring you joy and a strong sense of purpose, like volunteering, networking for a cause, or trying to make a difference in others’ lives. The key to happiness here is to understand where your calling lies and set out to follow your bliss. ‘Life Crafting’, or the process of reflecting on your strengths and interests, and aligning them with your vision, passion and desires, can be used as the framework for setting goals conducive to the meaningful life you wish to lead. Round-up: 10 keys to happiness “It is work to be happy”, says psychologist Barry Schwartz. Indeed, there’s more to happiness than feeling good about pleasurable things, but the good news is that it can be cultivated by consistently encouraging the 10 keys to happiness or happy habits listed above into our lives. Instead of trying to implement all the keys to happiness at once, try reflecting on what each individual key means for you, and devise ways to implement them using simple action plan, to be able to lead a rewarding and happier life. happiness.com | The fine art of being: learn, practise, share Are you a happiness.com member yet? Sign up for free now to enjoy: ■ our happiness magazine with practical life tips ■ share and support in our happiness forum ■ self-develop with free online classes in our Academy Life purpose | Motivation | Positive psychology Written by Sonia Vadlamani Fitness and healthy food blogger, food photographer and stylist, travel-addict and future self journaler. Sonia loves to write and has resolved to dedicate her life to revealing how easy and important it is to be happier, stronger and fitter each day. Follow her daily pursuits at FitFoodieDiary or on Instagram.

The ancient art of sound bathing is growing increasingly popular. Meditation teacher Ann Vrlak explores how sound baths harness the power of sound to reduce depression, anxiety and pain, as well as enhancing a sense of spirituality. Have you heard about sound baths or sound bathing? These are actually new terms for an ancient practice. For many hundreds of years, in various cultures, sound bathing has been part of meditation practice and healing – in some places, since the fifth century! In Australia, aboriginal tribes have employed the didgeridoo as a sound healing instrument for over 40,000 years. In a traditional practice, you would be lying down in yoga corpse pose, for half an hour up to a couple of hours, as the sound bath being created around you relaxed your mind and body, and led you into a meditation. Indeed, just as the name suggests, a sound bath fills the room and envelops the listeners. It’s quite an intense experience. And, if you’re someone who finds it difficult to meditate, sound bathing may be a great way for you to settle into the practice more easily. Is a sound bath like listening to music? So, how does a sound bath differ from listening to relaxing music, for example? The difference is there in the name: it’s a sound bath, not a music bath. The sounds that are used in this kind of practice are usually singular tones produced by instruments such as crystal bowls, gongs or bells. These specialized instruments are used because the sounds they emanate invoke deep relaxation and meditative states. Sound bathing is not about melody, but about the physical vibration of sound itself. The instruments are most often played in a way that produces deep, resonating tones that overlap each other. This creates a powerful field of vibration that is felt in body, mind and spirit – much in the same way that mantras do. RELATED: Vedic meditation – the benefits and mantras you need to know In many meditation traditions, sound is considered to be the most primordial and dynamic element in our universe. OM, the universal mantra, is said to be the sound of the universe itself, and its repetition will give you an increasing feeling of harmony and connection with all things that vibrate at its frequency. Whether you experience this kind of profound experience or not, the repetition of mantra, as well as sound bathing, encourages your mind to unwind by activating a deep relaxation response in your nervous system. The sound of the gong invokes deep relaxation What’s a sound bath like? I mentioned earlier that sound baths are traditionally part of a meditation practice. It is a tool to relax body and mind, so you are more receptive to a meditative state. Today, sound bath events or sessions are used just as often solely for their relaxation benefits. Whether people come for a spiritual or relaxation experience, sound baths are extremely popular in many places. Furthermore, sound baths are also used as therapeutic tools to heal physical and psychological illnesses. In fact, I was very lucky to experience a healing treatment myself a few years ago that involved the placement of crystal bowls on my chest that were “sung” by the therapist. At the time I thought, “This is what a cello feels like.” The sound vibrations reverberated through my body and created a deeply meditative, thought-free and pain-free state. I’ve never heard of this kind of treatment since – though I would go again in a second if I had the chance! “Sound bathing is not about melody, but about the physical vibration of sound itself. The instruments are played in a way that produces deep, resonating tones. This creates a powerful field of vibration that is felt in body, mind and spirit.” For most of us, here is the kind of simple format you can expect at a sound bath event: participants lie down on their backs on a yoga mat, with blankets and pillows available. The sessions are usually conducted in a similar way to a yoga class, with several other people in the room. The therapist then begins the sound bath. They use one or more instruments to create the series of overlapping tones, from deep low tones on a large crystal bowl, for example, to high sparkling sounds like a small chime. The sound bath usually begins quietly with frequent silences and grows in complexity and layering. The instruments create sounds that resonate and sustain for long periods, until they disappear into silence. RELATED: The power of silence Sound bathing can offer some people easier access to meditation. Following the sound into silence, eases your attention away from your mind, into your body and into sound – and ultimately, the silence between sounds. If there is a guided meditation component to the session, the therapist leads you through the meditation while the sound continues. If there is no guided meditation in your session, you simply let your attention rest in the physical sensations of the sound in your body and enjoy. Bowls are key components of sound baths shutterstock/Microgen The benefits of sound baths When you have a sound bath, you receive many of the same benefits as a regular meditation session: Reduced anxiety and depression Activation of your body’s relaxation mechanisms Better focus and concentration Promotion of good mental health Enhanced self-awareness Better sleep Plus, you can enjoy other benefits, like: The ability I touched upon earlier to move more easily into quieter, meditative states of mind Lowered blood pressure Relief of physical pain In terms of the science behind the practice of sound bathing, research studies into its potential benefits are few and far between. However, a 2017 study from the University of California did show that Tibetan singing bowl meditation had a positive effect on participants' mood, anxiety, pain and spiritual well-being. The study consisted of 62 participants. Compared with pre-meditation, following the sound meditation participants reported significantly reduced anger, tension, fatigue and depressive mood. Additionally, those who were previously naïve to this type of sound meditation experienced a significantly greater reduction in tension compared with participants who were experienced in this sound meditation. What's more, the feeling of spiritual well-being significantly increased across all participants. “Sound baths are traditionally part of a meditation practice. It is a tool to relax body and mind, so you are more receptive to a meditative state.” The results of this study may point to why the practice of sound bathing has a respected place at the heart of many meditation traditions. Want to try sound bathing? I’m writing this article about a year into the COVID-19 pandemic and public events are still restricted in many parts of the world. If you can't currently enjoying an in-person class, you can manage to experience a sound bath for yourself, thanks to the internet! One group offers virtual sound baths. And, you can take a three-hour (!) crystal bowl sound bath below, in high quality audio and video. I highly recommend it. You could also try creating your own sound bath at home. .embed-container { position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%; height: 0; overflow: hidden; max-width: 100%; } .embed-container iframe, .embed-container object, .embed-container embed { position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; } This is one of the many sites that sell Tibetan singing bowls, and it also provides instructions on how to create your own sound bath at home. If you can invest in a bowl, you’ll enjoy the added experience of making the sounds yourself and feeling the vibrations of the bell through your hands. You can listen for the tones and rhythms and silences that resonate most with you, and take you into a relaxed state. The takeaway At the very least, sound baths are one of the most unique experiences you’ll find and, at most, you may find a healing, relaxing, meditative practice that you can easily make part of your life. Especially with high quality recordings available online, sound baths are more accessible than ever. Having done many live sound baths myself, I heartily recommend you try one if you can. The experience of the direct sound vibrations around you are hard to describe. I hope you have a chance to try one some day. Main image: shutterstock/Microgen happiness.com | The fine art of being: learn, practise, share Are you a happiness.com member yet? Sign up for free now to enjoy: ■ our happiness magazine with practical life tips ■ share and support in our happiness forum ■ self-develop with free online classes in our Academy Stress management | Mindfulness | Burnout Written by Ann Vrlak Ann Vrlak is Founder of OneSelf Meditation and a meditation practitioner for over 25 years. She’s a Certified Meditation Teacher for adults and for children (the best job ever!). She loves to share how the perspective and practice of meditation can support people with their everyday stresses and on their journey of self-discovery.

Finding your flow, stress reduction and self-expression three ways in which practising art can help fight mental health issues. Stanislava Puač Jovanović explores the evidence around art therapy for depression and outlines the benefits it can bring to your mental health. Art in any form presents a symbolic expression of the artist’s inner world. It is a vessel for self-exploration, articulation of subconscious contents, growth, and – psychological recovery. People have always felt this connection between creating or consuming art and the process of internal healing. Many great painters, sculptors, musicians and writers lived a life in which art was intertwined with mental health issues. However, you do not have to be a painter or a musician to let art heal you. My father, God rest his soul, albeit not an artist by profession, survived the most challenging times in his (our) life by painting and listening to Led Zeppelin every night for many months. In fact, using art for depression therapy and treatment has a long history. I'll review the empirical evidence corroborating art therapy’s potential to help people deal with depression. There are many options to use art for depression. I hope you will find your personal path towards soothing the darkness of depression through creating or enjoying artwork. Art therapy for depression You do not need to be a professional artist – not even slightly talented – to benefit from art therapy for depression. That's because the essence of its curative effect is not in the artistic quality of your creation – it's in exploring and expressing your most intimate experiences, often hidden from yourself, even. To bring this a little closer, I'll start with a quote from C. G. Jung, artistic in itself: “I should advise you to put it all down as beautifully and as carefully as you can — in some beautifully bound book. It will seem as if you were making the visions banal — but then you need to do that — then you are freed from the power of them. If you do that with these eyes, for instance, they will cease to draw you. You should never try to make the visions come again. Think of it in your imagination and try to paint it. Then when these things are in some precious book, you can go to the book and turn over the pages, and for you, it will be your church — your cathedral — the silent places of your spirit where you will find renewal. If anyone tells you that it is morbid or neurotic and you listen to them — then you will lose your soul — for in that book is your soul.” ― C.G. Jung, Visions: Notes of the Seminar Given 1930-1934 Art can be a therapy for depression shutterstock/WAYHOME studio Jung himself can be considered one of the most dedicated explores of one’s own psyche. Much of this self-exploration occurred in an interplay with art and its ability to make the symbolic nature of subconsciousness accessible. After having separated from Freud, during the nights in which psychosis menaced him, he kept on pursuing the inner images. During four years, Jung conducted these psychological experiments on himself and created Liber Novus (The Red Book). According to his own words, this self-work was by far the most important one in his professional and personal life. The importance of self-expression and self-discovery I allowed myself to speak about Jung to this extent because it is a wonderful illustration of what art can do for someone’s mental health. Art, being non-verbal and symbolic, opens up the path towards those parts of the psyche that cannot be expressed verbally without losing meaning. Art for depression, to emphasize Jung’s words again, serves to deliver “the silent places of your spirit where you will find renewal”. RELATED: Feeling blue or clinically depressed? The 4 things you should look out for Depression, as anyone who has experienced it to any degree knows, is a state in which destructive forces take over. When you engage in creating art, you are, in a way, presenting a counter-weight to such damaging energies within you. Creation fights the destruction. And you do it without struggling to convey, using words alone, the abyss inside you to someone else. The evidence for art therapy The American Psychological Association defines art therapy simply as: “the use of artistic activities, such as painting and clay modelling, in psychotherapy and rehabilitation. Art therapy provides the opportunity to express oneself imaginatively, authentically and spontaneously. Results of such a therapeutic work with art are personal fulfilment, emotional reparation and transformation. Art therapy uses dance, drama, music, poetry and visual arts to help clients express themselves. It is based on an underlying notion of a holistic approach to people. In other words, we are as non-verbal beings as we are verbal – the former being potentially even stronger than the latter. “Art, being non-verbal and symbolic, opens up the path towards those parts of the psyche that cannot be expressed verbally without losing meaning.” Although using art for depression has a long history, starting from the 1940s, there are few controlled clinical art therapy trials. The reasons are methodological. Given the individualistic and uncontrolled, spontaneous flow of the therapeutic session, it is challenging to reach standardised conditions for trials to be conducted. However, the findings that are reported testify of the potent power of art for those struggling with depressive moods. A 2007 study from Florida State University carried out on a group of convicts confirmed that those involved in an eight-week-long art therapy treatment experienced a significant decrease in symptoms of depression. Convicts have a strong urge not to express their problems verbally because a verbal disclosure might put them in more trouble. Therefore, the non-verbal nature of art for depression served as the ideal channel for dealing with it. Meanwhile, a 2012 study out of Seoul Women's University conducted on older adults revealed that using art therapy to target depression could reduce negative emotions, improve self-esteem and decrease anxiety. The effects were highly evident, with a reported reduction of negative feelings of over 85 per cent. Another study with the elderly also supported such claims. Symptoms of depression reduced dramatically after just six weeks of art therapy. You don't need to be a skilled artist to try art therapy Among women who were recently diagnosed with breast cancer, according to findings, creative arts therapy intervention brought about an increase in self-expression, spirituality and psychological well-being. Depression scores were lower after only four, one-hour-long weekly sessions. How efficient could art for depression be? We could look for an answer in a study that compared the effects of traditional verbal psychodynamic therapy and brief psychodynamic art therapy. Women with depression underwent ten weekly sessions of one of these approaches to treating depression. Results showed that art and verbal psychotherapies were comparable, and both brought about relief from depression. Arts and Minds is a UK organisation that founds its work on blending art with mental health interventions. Its engagement testifies about the extent of effectiveness of art for depression, alongside other mental health disturbances. One of their users summarised their experience: “It was a way I could express myself and allow how I was feeling to really surface […]!” Apart from these studies that look into how art works to reduce symptoms of depression, the overall view on art therapy is more than positive. As an extensive literature review and another scientific analysis of available findings revealed, art therapy: reduces stress and cortisol levels increases mindfulness, especially with mindfulness-based art therapy brings balance and calmness to the thinking process delivers more flow experiences reduces symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) eases pain relieves anxiety increases self-esteem improves immune system function helps academic performance develops innovative thinking Viewing art According to an article written by the University of Arizona staff, even viewing art can benefit our well-being. Although everyone is uniquely affected by art, its ability to impact us is undisputed. Viewing art stimulates our brain to try and discern patterns and meanings. According to the article authors, viewing an artwork increases blood flow to our brain by 10 per cent, which is equivalent to looking at someone we love. “You do not need to be an artist to benefit from art for depression. That's because the essence of its curative effect is not in the artistic quality of your creation – it's in exploring and expressing your most intimate experiences.” Finally, embodied cognition, the process in which mirror neurons transform what you see into emotions, could also explain why art can help lift someone out of a depressive mood. The energy from the painting affects your brain as if it were real. That goes for serene landscapes, as well as for abstract art that somehow captures the healing you need to occur. Bring art for depression into your life I started this article with an expressed hope that you will find your way to use art therapy for depression. The options and media are plentiful. Join a painting class. Relieve tension with adult colouring books or mandalas. Do photography. Sketch something. Dance, move, journal, make jewellery. There are little (if any) limits to art and its workings. In fact, you can start merely by consuming art and letting it wake up emotions and potentials you have forgotten about. Get some art supplies and start pouring your soul onto paper or canvas, be it as abstract or as concrete as you need it to. Finally, you could work with an art therapist to benefit from the structured professional approach to your creativity in depression. Whatever route you decide to take, one thing is certain. Art as therapy will open up the channel of communication between the inexpressible pain and hollowness of depression and your inner healing power. Or, as someone incomparably wiser than myself had expressed it: “No tree, it is said, can grow to heaven unless its roots reach down to hell.” - Carl. G. Jung, Aion Main image: shutterstock/Monkey Business Images happiness.com | The fine art of being: learn, practise, share Are you a happiness.com member? Sign up for free to enjoy: ■ our happiness magazine with practical life tips ■ sharing and supporting others in our happiness forum ■ developing with free online classes in our Academy Coaching | Letting go | Authenticity Written by Stanislava Puač Jovanović Stanislava Puač Jovanović has a master’s degree in psychology and works as a freelance writer and researcher in this area. Her primary focus is on questions relating to mental health, stress-management, self-development and well-being.

What exactly is Niksen, the Danish art of doing nothing? Dee Marques takes up the arduous challenge of, well, sitting and doing very little at all, in order to discover the benefits it can bring to the mind and body. Have you ever needed a break urgently, but then felt bad about taking it? Unfortunately, many of us feel guilty about doing nothing due to the belief that we must constantly be achieving or producing something, otherwise we’ll be branded as lazy. So when we hear about trends that embrace “the art of doing nothing”, we might equate them with a character flaw or roll our eyes incredulously. I’ll admit that I’m guilty of this, so before writing this article I did several 10-minute sessions trying to experience what the art of doing nothing felt like. And, initially, I will admit that it felt stressful. The first time I sat in my crafts room and my eyes instantly wandered to my book shelf, so I started to think about all the books I hadn’t managed to read yet. Then I saw my box of sewing UFOs (unfinished objects) and felt the pressure to get on with them. The art of doing nothing at all is such an alien concept that my husband even walked in while I was staring out of the window and asked me “are you OK?”, which shows that we’ve come to see idleness as a sign that something must be wrong. Indulge in the art of doing nothing shutterstock/stockfour The problem is that being constantly on the go can raise stress levels, cause anxiety, and interfere with getting better sleep. This can get us into a catch-22 situation: being tired and stressed can lower productivity, and the fewer things we get done, the more stressed we become and the more we push ourselves, which is the perfect recipe for burnout. RELATED: 14 sleep hacks to get a good night's rest Moreover, the COVID pandemic has changed many things. Whereas before staying in was a way to relax and de-stress, that’s no longer the case for many people who feel antsy having their busy schedule disrupted. But at the same time, lockdowns have created an opportunity to explore our habits and whether we use time in the best possible way. So, there's never been a more appropriate time to ask why we should incorporate the art of doing nothing into our daily routine. What is Niksen, the art of doing nothing? Niksen is a Dutch word that’s hard to translate into English, although that doesn’t mean that the art of doing nothing can’t be learned! Olga Mecking, author of a book on how to embrace the art of doing nothing, defines Niksen as doing something without a purpose. Indeed, the only purpose of Niksen is to enjoy the feeling of doing nothing. It’s similar to the Italian expression dolce far niente, the sweetness of doing nothing. “Mastering Niksen – the art of doing nothing – can counter the constant bombardment of information we’re exposed to in everyday life.” Before moving on, we should clarify what Niksen is not. It’s not mindfulness, where we are trying to pay attention to our immediate thoughts and surroundings. During Niksen, the mind roams free. And it’s not laying on the sofa looking at our social media feed, because when we do this the wheels are still spinning. There’s a difference between laying on the couch while scrolling through your phone and simply laying on the couch, just because. The art of doing nothing is about being idle. It could be something like simply sitting in a chair or looking out the window, which is still an action but doesn’t have an ultimate purpose or intention. What are the benefits of practising Niksen? The Netherlands is often ranked among the world’s happiest countries and in 2021 it made it to the top five. Could one of the reasons why this nation is so joyous be due to the fact that the Dutch embrace the art of doing nothing? Happiness requires good mental and physical health. Practising Niksen gives the mind and body a break, and as research has proven, slowing down can lower stress and strengthen the immune system. Carolien Hamming, one of the experts on Niksen, says that we need to be recharged, just like we recharge our mobile phones when they run out of battery. Doing so will make us less vulnerable to physical and mental burnout. RELATED: Feel stress-free fast – 11 science-backed techniques Mastering the art of doing nothing can counter the constant bombardment of information we’re exposed to in everyday life. Studies show that our brain has to process approximately 74GB of information every day, which is equivalent to 16 movies. This can easily cause feelings of exhaustion and some researchers suggest it can interfere with decision making, unless we start to fully embrace the art of doing nothing. Niksen lets your mind take a break shutterstock/fizkes Japanese doctor Naoko Yamamoto – who has lived in the Netherlands for years – knows what benefits the art of doing nothing can bring. According to her, Niksen is more than a way to manage stress: those peaceful, reflective moments can become sources of inspiration. Studies confirm that a wandering mind isn’t necessarily a bad thing, and there’s a whole book written on the impact of mind idleness on creativity and problem solving. So, how do you practise Niksen? After reading more about Niksen, I tried some more do-nothing sessions and noticed that the experience stopped being so stressful. Granted, doing nothing isn’t easy in societies where a fast-paced lifestyle is the norm, and letting the mind wander is easier said than done, but it is possible. Here are few guidelines to help you start practising the art of doing nothing: Start small and aim for a few minutes at the time. This site can be useful. Schedule Niksen time several times a day. Personally, I've found it helpful to practise it in between tasks when working from home, as it gives me a clean break. Expect to feel guilty or weird at first, and stop if you notice negative thoughts or you start worrying or ruminating. Make it a device-free space. Choose something that doesn’t require thinking. Back at school, you were probably told to focus and stop daydreaming! But daydreaming can be Niksen, as it doesn’t achieve anything and serves no particular purpose; it’s just letting the mind go where it wants to go. Go for a walk without planning the route in advance; just go where your feet take you. Remember the story about Isaac Newton and the apple falling from a tree? What was he doing under a tree anyway? Probably indulging in the art of doing nothing. So why not “just” sit under a tree? You can be doing something physically and at the same time keep your mind in Niksen mode. For example, birdwatching or knitting repetitive stitches. Make the most of the wet spring weather and just sit by a window watching the rain fall. Have a pet? Watch them for a while. They’ll probably be doing Niksen too! As suggested in this first-person account, Niksen can even be something seemingly boring and irrelevant, like just watching coffee brew. Whatever you do, don’t multitask during Niksen time. Conclusions: doing nothing does something Niksen is allowing yourself the luxury of taking a mental break and giving your brain a short holiday. It may take some practice to reprogram ourselves so that we don’t see doing nothing as a waste of time, but rather as an investment in self-care and well-being. The boundaries between rest and productivity are blurred in modern life, so Niksen can help us differentiate these concepts and ways of using time and appreciate each one of them for their positive aspects. So, will you be scheduling Niksen time this week? It’s the first step towards mastering the art of doing nothing and enjoying every second of it! • happiness.com | The fine art of being: learn, practice, share Are you a happiness.com member yet? Sign up for free now to: ■ enjoy our happiness magazine with practical life tips ■ share and support others in our happiness forum ■ learn with free online classes in our happiness Academy Gratitude | Work life balance | Coaching Written by Dee Marques A social sciences graduate with a keen interest in languages, communication, and personal development strategies. Dee loves exercising, being out in nature, and discovering warm and sunny places where she can escape the winter.

There have been plenty of feel-good health and environmental stories in the press during March. Ed Gould rounds up his Top Ten from the past month to uplift and inspire. March was a time of great hopefulness in many parts of the world as some semblance of normality began to emerge for the first time in months. That said, the headlines still tended to be dominated by international frictions, disease and unrest. Of course, there were plenty of good news stories that didn't get the attention they deserved, too. So, what were some of the best? 1. Cheetahs to be reintroduced to India It's about 70 years since cheetahs were last found roaming Asia. Since then, the big cat has been only found in Africa. However, conservationists are turning the tide for the creature as six sites – including the Shergarh Wildlife Sanctuary in Rajasthan and the Gandhi Sagar Wildlife Sanctuary – have been identified as being suitable for them. According to the Indian Express, two teams of wildlife experts, one in South Africa and one in Namibia, will choose cheetahs for the project which, it's hoped, will help to ensure their long-term survival. 2. Birdsong will make you happier, according to science It may sound obvious, but being in close proximity to birds – particularly hearing them sing – has been shown to induce states of happiness in people. As reported by Yahoo! Life, the German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Researchers set out to determine whether it was really true that birds make people feel happier. They discovered that all types of birdlife are able to increase the life satisfaction of people. In fact, they even put a value on it – the researchers say it raises joy levels so much that it's the equivalent of being given around £100 per week! Bird song gives you a boost shutterstock/AlekseyKarpenko 3. Cannabis extract may help Alzheimer's sufferers Scientists in the USA have been working on the cannabis extract known as CBD. During their experiments on mice, they found that exposure to the naturally produced substance had a beneficial effect on cognition. They now suggest that a two-week course of CBD among humans could help to improve the brain function of people who have an inherited form of Alzheimer's disease. According to the research, which was carried out at the Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University, CBD promotes the growth of proteins that help to consume dead brain cells. RELATED: How to talk to a parent with dementia 4. Damaged motor neurons can be treated with new compound Another medical breakthrough was reported in various media outlets in March. This one focussed on amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, otherwise known as ALS. The condition often leads to a loss of control in movement as the degenerative disorder worsens over time. However, scientists now think that a new compound, known as NU-9, can repair damaged motor neurons in the brain. It could offer patients the chance of a treatment pathway in the future. 5. Coral reefs around Fiji make a better than expected comeback When many of the beautiful coral reefs around the island nation of Fiji were destroyed following a powerful cyclone, some people thought they might take decades to recover. However, according to a report in the Guardian, marine scientists have found that the reefs are once more looking vibrant and teeming with life. Fiji's coral reefs have come alive again shutterstock/stockphoto-graf A tropical cyclone named Winston struck in 2016 leaving many Fijian corals looking like rubble. The Wildlife Conservation Society has been monitoring the situation since then and said that it has been truly surprised at how the reefs had recovered. Part of the success has been down to the way in which the society has created no-fishing areas to help preserve the reefs, something it did in tandem with local communities. 6. Chimpanzees use Zoom to stay social During the pandemic, many people have learned to turn to technology to keep their social lives going. However, it' not just humans who are making increased use of video conference calling. In the Czech Republic, zookeepers have been setting up Zoom calls between chimpanzees in different locations. A report in USA Today stated that a safari park in the northern town of Dvur Kralove had started using the technology to enrich the lives of its six chimps by allowing them to see other primates in a zoo located miles away. 7. Mindfulness found to be useful for dealing with pandemic anxiety There can be little doubt that the last 12 months or so have been a more worrying time than usual. Indeed, vast swathes of the world's population have suffered from fear and anxiety relating to the pandemic. However, a recently published paper suggests that these worries can be alleviated by practising mindfulness. Of course, mindfulness techniques are already well-known for the beneficial mental states that they help to bring about. This study, published in the academic journal Global Advances in Health and Medicine, is the first to suggest it also works for pandemic-induced fears. Over 200 volunteers took part in the clinical trial. RELATED: 7 mindfulness tips for staying engaged 8. Rare toad bred for the first time in Manchester Scientists at the Manchester Museum announced they had been able to successfully breed the endangered harlequin toad in a global first. Native to Central America, the toad is so-called for its bright yellow and black markings. After six of the creatures were brought to the UK in 2018, no breeding has occurred. The beautifully-marked harlequin toad shutterstock/goran_safarek However, by replicating the humidity, lighting and water flow of their natural environment, the team was able to see tadpoles successfully developing for the first time. The breeding programme was a culmination of three years of sustained work, according to a report in the Guardian. 9. 3D printing to be used for a school in a global first A site in southern Madagascar has been set aside for a new school. Incredibly, the difference with this project is that a non-profit NGO will be building it using only 3D printed construction materials. In an effort to show how sustainable such buildings can be, Thinking Huts will deliver the design of the school faster and more sustainably than would otherwise be possible. The NGO stated that the method would mean schools of this type could be built in less than a week – including the foundations, electrical works and plumbing. It's hoped that this process will become the norm in parts of the world where more educational establishments are needed. 10. Electronic waste is beginning to decline For decades, people have been producing more and more electronic waste. All sorts of appliances are scrapped and head to landfill sites rather than being recycled each year. However, according to Recycling Today, the tide may be turning. This is because a research team from Yale and the Rochester Institute of Technology have discovered that the amount of electronic waste that is currently being produced is in decline for the first time. Of course, humans are still making such waste but now at a slower rate thanks to increased product longevity and improved recycling opportunities. • Main image: shutterstock/Romolo Tavani happiness.com | The fine art of being: learn, practise, share Are you a happiness.com member yet? Sign up for free now to enjoy: ■ our happiness magazine with practical life tips ■ share and support others in our happiness forum ■ develop with free online classes in our happiness Academy Nature | Positive news | Biology | Biotechnology Written by Ed Gould Ed Gould is a UK-based journalist and practitioner of Reiki.

The monotony of life can have us struggling with boredom. But it doesn't have to be this way! From changing your commute to trying new food, Dee Marques suggests 8 simple and science-backed ideas for shaking things up when you feel like has got stale. Why do we feel bored with life? Isn’t it a conundrum that we so often need a solid routine to feel settled, but once we get there, it doesn’t take long for boredom and fatigue to set in? Another contradiction that has become evident during the past year is that even though we may have more time than ever (especially if working from home), it’s also hard to find things to fill that extra time. Furthermore, even more contradictory is the fact that we now have a wealth of entertainment options at our fingertips. Indeed, digital technology has opened up a whole new world of things to do and learn, yet many people are still bored with life and don’t make the most of all that’s available. Life can be long and can be repetitive, but it’s also short and it would be a pity if we spent it being bored and demotivated. In this article I’d like to share some strategies I use whenever I feel bored with life. Exploring boredom
 We all feel demotivated and bored every now and then, and that’s natural. The cyclical nature of boredom is due to a process called hedonic adaptation. As humans, we have the ability to adapt to change, whether change involves positive or negative experiences. In some ways, this ability has guaranteed our survival as a species, but hedonic adaptation comes with a downside: once we get used to something, it no longer offers a challenge and we become apathetic. Although hedonic adaptation is a natural process, sometimes being bored with life can be problematic. Indeed, researchers have found links between boredom, substance abuse and mood disorders. It’s not that being bored with life can cause all of this, but it can aggravate tendencies or existing problems. For example, boredom can make people with depressive tendencies spiral into negative thoughts and feelings of worthlessness. In other people, feeling bored with life can trigger high-risk or destructive behaviours (like substance abuse or gambling, etc.) just to get a thrill. Bored with life? It's time to find meaning shutterstock/garretsworkshop Moreover, there’s a difference between being bored with life and being tired of life. The latter is what psychologists call existential boredom, a state in which nothing matters or sparks joy. You could picture it as a chronic feeling of being bored with life. The problem with being with tired of life is that it’s dangerously similar to depression. People affected by existential boredom have deep feelings of inadequacy and believe that life is passing them by without them achieving anything meaningful. RELATED: How to find meaning in life – 7 strategies The trick to avoiding this is knowing how to handle hedonic adaption. When apathy sets in, don’t let it take over. Look at it this way: being bored with life is another way the inner self has of asking, “is this all there is to it?”. In other words, a bored inner self is in urgent need of new challenges that bring joy and meaning to life. So, if the rot has set in, here are some ideas to shake things up a little when the monotony and routine of life is getting you down. Bored with life? 8 ideas to shake things up 1. Do something different – every day Novelty is the spice of life, but don’t just wait until you wake up to decide how novelty will look on that particular day. If you leave it to chance, it will never happen! Plan in advance and make a list of new things to try every day of the week. Coming up with ideas may be hard at first if you’re stuck in a rut. What I do is break the day down into different sections. For example, section 1 is “early morning” or “waking up”. Here you could choose to wake up earlier so you can watch the sun rise, start with a new morning meditation routine, or even stay in bed for longer if you’re usually an early bird! 2. Change your commute Seeing the same old sights every day at the same time of the day can be mentally exhausting. The good news is that there’s usually more than one way to get to the same place, so try a new route. If possible, walk, cycle or take the bus to work. It’s amazing how much more receptive we are to our surroundings when we’re not behind the wheel. new parks, green spaces “When apathy sets in, don’t let it take over. Look at it this way: being bored with life is another way the inner self has of asking 'is this all there is to it?'” Aside from helping to shake off your boredom, taking new routes to our workplaces or schools is scientifically-proven to boost your brain. When we try new routes and see new things, we activate the cortex, the part of the brain responsible for information processing. We also stimulate the hippocampus, the part of our brain that stores memory. At one point in his life, Microsoft founder Bill Gates took a new route home each day to stimulate his brain – and look what he achieved! And, if you're working from home, try working from a new place such as a café or co-working space every now and then. If you can’t, change the layout or décor of your home office (if you're lucky enough to have one!). 3. Find purpose in your work Talking of work, what we do for our living is a key component of finding motivation and keeping boredom at bay. Most of us spend eight or so hours a day working, so if you find your job monotonous and unchallenging, it’s easy to become bored with life. If your current role doesn’t bring meaning or purpose, it’s time to start thinking about a new career. Volunteering in your spare time is a way to explore options that may stimulate you without having to quit your current job. And if you can’t change jobs, try to come up with imaginative ways of doing what you already do – you can find 10 suggestions here. 4. Learn something new One of the most exciting things about life is that we all have the chance to never stop learning new things. Indeed, there are always new skills to learn and practise. If you're feeling bored, sign up for a new class, whether it’s something related to a new career path or something creative that can help you discover new talents. It could also be a new workout routine. Exercise is a proven mood booster, and there are so many options to try that it can take months or years to get bored. Personally, I’m a huge kickboxing and martial arts fan, but when I get bored of the same old routine I mix it up with dancing lessons. I’m terrible at it (!), but it doesn’t matter as long as it helps me snap out of that tired-of-life feeling. Turn off the TV and start a new course! 5. Do something for someone else Sometimes, focusing our attention on others is the best way to forget about our own troubles. If you’re bored with life, take interest in someone else’s life. Helping others creates a feeling of purpose, since we know we’re doing something useful, which is central to life satisfaction. So keep your eyes open for signs of people who may need help and think about how you can be useful to others. As a bonus, this will either help you make new friends or create deeper bonds with existing ones. 6. Try new food I recently came across a study on how important novelty is in fighting the feeling of being bored with life. The study looked at the effect of eating popcorn with chopsticks instead of with bare hands (how’s that for a non-boring challenge?) and found that it helped bring more enjoyment and grounding in the present and enjoyment. Even something as simple as finding exotic spices and preparing a new dish can help. 7. Become more mindful A professor at a Canadian University said that “mindfulness is accepting the present moment as it is, whereas boredom is the antithesis of that”. Of course, when when we’re bored with life, the last thing we want to do is think about how bored we are right there and then. But if done with the right intention, an inward and mindful look into our feelings can help. Looking for a place to start? Go through the questions listed in this practise exercise. 8. Cut down on screen time Social media and video games are meant to entertain us, but the problem with new technologies is that they’re designed to deliver instant gratification. Once that’s achieved, we’re on a wild goose chase to find something else that’s new and exciting. “One of the most exciting things about life is that we all have the chance to never stop learning new things. If you're feeling bored, sign up for a new class.” The mechanism behind instant gratification activates certain neural pathways in the brain that are similar to those found in addictive behaviour, which is why some people find it so hard to “disconnect” from the online world. However, digital entertainment doesn’t necessarily help fight boredom. In fact, it spending too much time on it may get in the way of trying some of the ideas suggested above that would make you feel less bored with life. So, either cut down on screen time, or choose carefully the content you consume instead of scrolling mindlessly. For example, instead of allowing the YouTube “black hole” to suck you in, only use the platform to watch videos related to new things you’re learning, as per point #4 above. Conclusion: escaping boredom Straddling the fine line between routine and monotony takes practise and determination, but the pay off is well worth it: you’ll be able to bring new experiences and variety into your life and discover new passions. So, if you’re currently feeling bored with life, don’t wait for the world to entertain you. Take active steps to find meaning and joy by using the ideas I've shared with you here. • Main image: shutterstock/shift drive happiness.com | The fine art of being: learn, practice, share Are you a happiness.com member yet? Sign up for free now to: ■ enjoy our happiness magazine with practical life tips ■ share and support others in our happiness forum ■ learn with free online classes in our happiness Academy Gratitude | Work life balance | Coaching Written by Dee Marques A social sciences graduate with a keen interest in languages, communication, and personal development strategies. Dee loves exercising, being out in nature, and discovering warm and sunny places where she can escape the winter.