What Happiness Feels Like Physically In The Body

The physical sensation of happiness and other emotions revealed by study mapping bodily emotions.

The physical sensation of happiness and other emotions revealed by study mapping bodily emotions.

Unlike thoughts, the emotions don’t live entirely in the mind, they are also associated with bodily or physical sensations.

For example, when we feel nervous, we get ‘butterflies in our stomach’.

Thanks to a psychology study, though, we now have a map of the links between bodily emotions and bodily sensations.

Body maps of emotions

Finnish researchers induced different emotions in 701 participants and then got them to colour in a body map of where they felt increasing or decreasing activity (Nummenmaa et al., 2013).

Participants in the study were from both Western European countries like Finland and Sweden and also from East Asia (Taiwan).

Despite the cultural differences, they found remarkable similarities in how people responded.

Here are the body maps for six basic emotions. Yellow indicates the highest level of activity, followed by red. Black is neutral, while blue and light blue indicate lowered and very low activity respectively.

The authors explain:

“Most basic emotions were associated with sensations of elevated activity in the upper chest area, likely corresponding to changes in breathing and heart rate.

Similarly, sensations in the head area were shared across all emotions, reflecting probably both physiological changes in the facial area as well as the felt changes in the contents of mind triggered by the emotional events.”

What happiness feels like

It’s fascinating that happiness is the one emotion that fills the whole body activity, including the legs, perhaps indicating that happy people feel ready to spring into action, or maybe do a jig.

Along with the basic emotions, here are the body maps of six more complex emotions:

The stand-out emotion here is love, which only just fails to reach down into the legs, but lights up the rest of the body with activity very successfully.

The three centres of activity are head, heart and err…

The study’s lead author, Lauri Nummenmaa, explained:

“Emotions adjust not only our mental, but also our bodily states.

This way they prepare us to react swiftly to the dangers, but also to the opportunities.

Awareness of the corresponding bodily changes may subsequently trigger the conscious emotional sensations, such as the feeling of happiness.”

Image credit: Body maps courtesy of Aalto University

Authentic Life: How To Be Real By Martin Heidegger

Use philosopher Martin Heidegger’s existentialist philosophy on how to live an authentic life and how to be real.

Use philosopher Martin Heidegger’s existentialist philosophy on how to live an authentic life and how to be real.

Feeling anxious is the price we pay for an authentic life.

So said Martin Heidegger, one of the most important philosophers of the 20th century.

Heidegger also thought people should live authentically by accepting death, experimenting with life by exploring all its possibilities and taking responsibility for their actions.

As well as being a philosopher, Heidegger was also a kind of early positive psychologist on how to be real.

Positive psychologists ask how we can live an authentic life by working on our strengths and improving daily experience.

Heidegger believed that becoming better is a choice we make ourselves, which is the first step to authenticity.

Here are six of the main points from Heidegger’s philosophy that bear on how we can live an optimal life.

  1. Be an existentialist.
  2. Live an authentic life.
  3. Avoid the inauthentic.
  4. Anxiety is the price for authenticity.
  5. Escape guilt.
  6. The limits to freedom.

1. Be an existentialist

Martin Heidegger was an existentialist philosopher.

This means he was interested in the meaning of human existence.

He wanted to place the human being at the centre, focusing on our ability to feel, choose and be individuals.

He was reacting against rationalist philosophers like Hegel and Kant who downplayed the importance of thoughts and feelings.

Heidegger said that people and the world in which we live are inseparable.

Without the world, people would not exist and without people, the world would not exist.

He used the word ‘Dasein’, which literally means ‘to be’ (sein) ‘there’ (Da).

Human existence is something special to Heidegger.

We are in a constant state of change: we have to choose what to accept and reject, how to expand and evaluate what is around us.

Human beings choose the nature of their existence.

2. Live an authentic life

Heidegger said it was vital to live an authentic life in order to be real.

An authentic life involves coming to terms with the fact that all of us will one day die.

With that knowledge accepted, we can get on with building meaning in our lives.

An authentic life involves becoming all that we can become.

Martin Heidegger (above)

The certainty of death brings urgency to the search for our individual potential.

We must explore all of life’s possibilities in order to become the most authentic version of ourselves.

An authentic life is exciting.

Here is a quote from Steve Jobs’ Stanford University commencement speech:

“Remembering that I’ll be dead soon is the most important tool I’ve ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life.

Because almost everything – all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure – these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important.

Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose.

You are already naked.

There is no reason not to follow your heart.”

That is how to be real.

3. Avoid the inauthentic life

The inauthentic life has pretence at its heart — it is a fake life.

Inauthentic people pretend they are not going to die, which reduces their urgency.

One way of being inauthentic is by living a conventional, traditional life that simply follows society’s rules.

Inauthentic people give up on the freedom that is given to them and let others make their choices.

A sign of an inauthentic individual is often saying things that one doesn’t actually believe or that doesn’t reflect one’s inner feelings.

4. Anxiety is the price for authenticity

One of the main barriers to leading an authentic life is that it provokes anxiety.

The reason is that freedom involves accepting responsibility for one’s actions.

If one is truly free and living an authentic life, one cannot blame genetics, circumstances, parents or anyone else for our choices.

That means that we must take responsibility for our actions.

This is a key problem at the heart of existentialist philosophy: we cannot be truly free without taking responsibility.

To be authentic, for Heidegger, means experimenting with life, trying different things to see what happens.

The unknown creates anxiety, as well as being the path to authenticity — it is the price we have to pay for trying to be real.

5. Escape guilt with an authentic life

Given the anxieties linked to living an authentic life, most people are not fully authentic.

Most people give up at least some of their freedom in order to minimise anxiety.

This generates guilt: the feeling of regret at violating our own standards.

The only way to escape from this guilt is to try and live more authentically.

6. The limits to an authentic life

Although Heidegger believed strongly in personal freedom, he recognised that it had limits.

We are each constrained to some extent by our circumstances, including our upbringing, culture and personal characteristics.

He accepted, then, that anyone cannot become anything they want, however hard they try to be real.

Rather, we can become better, given whatever we start with.

Becoming better is a choice which we make ourselves and this is the first step to authenticity.

Read on…

Find out what these other philosophers had to say about how to be real:

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The Emotion That Helps People Live Longer

Over four thousand people were followed for six years to assess their chance of dying through any cause.

Over four thousand people were followed for six years to assess their chance of dying through any cause.

Even small increases in happiness are linked to living longer, research finds.

Dr Rahul Malhotra, study co-author, said:

“The findings indicate that even small increments in happiness may be beneficial to older people’s longevity.

Therefore individual-level activities as well as government policies and programs that maintain or improve happiness or psychological well-being may contribute to a longer life among older people.”

The results come from 4,478 people aged over 60, living in Singapore.

They were followed for six years to assess their chance of dying through any cause.

The results showed that among unhappy older people, 20% died in the subsequent six years.

However, in happy older people, just 15% had passed away.

Dr June May-Ling Lee, study co-author, said:

“The consistency of the inverse association of happiness with mortality across age groups and gender is insightful — men and women, the young-old and the old-old, all are likely to benefit from an increase in happiness.”

The study was published in the journal Age and Ageing (Chei et al., 2018).

People Were Happier In The Past Than They Remember (M)

People significantly underestimate how happy they were in the past.

People significantly underestimate how happy they were in the past.


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Confucius On Happiness: How To Live A Good Life

“The one who would be in constant happiness must frequently change.” — Confucius

“The one who would be in constant happiness must frequently change.” — Confucius

In China two and half thousand years ago one man, Kong Qiu, and his followers, synthesised the traditions of the Chinese people to create what they believed were the fundamental principles of humanity.

Of course what Westerners now call Confucianism has changed over the years, just like the other major philosophies that have flourished in the East: Buddhism and Taoism.

But to have survived this long, these systems of thought must have at their cores a useful set of principles that help people live the ‘good life’.

Following on from previous posts on philosophers Epicurus and Schopenhauer, as well as the modern obsession with self-help books, I look at what Ancient Chinese philosophies have to teach us about how to be happy.

In an article in the Journal of Happiness Studies, Zhang and Veenhoven (in press) compare the ancient Chinese versions of Taosim, Buddhism and Confucianism with the modern conditions of happiness.

They use findings from the multitude of studies collected in the World Database of Happiness to reach the conclusion that, compared to ancient Buddhism and Taoism, it is Confucius’ philosophical teachings that are most likely to lead to a happy life.

So, here (briefly) is Confucius’ advice on how to live the good life, contrasted with some of the tenets of Taoism and Buddhism.

1. Invest in intimate ties

Confucianism’s view of life is built on the idea of ‘Jen’.

This means a feeling of concern for the wellbeing of others.

Those following Confucianism should bring Jen into both their social relations and, so far as they are able, into society itself.

Compared with the modern observed conditions of happiness this looks like good advice.

Generally speaking marriage makes us happier, more friends make us happier and people are especially happy if they have someone to confide in.

Classical Taoism goes along with this point but ancient Buddhism runs counter to the evidence, advising the avoidance of intimate ties.

2. Confucius said embrace society

Society is accepted within Confucianism and the philosophy encourages its followers to engage in it.

Looking at the research, this is also good advice.

People who are members of clubs, churches and other organisations are happier, people who have a job are happier, and so on.

The evidence shows that this is also true at a societal level.

Countries in which people have the densest networks of friends are also those in which people are the happiest.

In comparison, ancient Taoism says retreat to nature and Buddhism says withdraw completely from society – both these points of view are suspect if happiness is your goal.

3. Be successful for happiness

Confucianism recommends a devotion to your occupation.

The wealth earned from working is also seen in a positive light within Confucianism.

Generally speaking people with more money and higher status are happier (but bear in mind that more money doesn’t always equal more happiness).

In contrast, both ancient Taoism and Buddhism are sniffy about earnings.

4. Confucius said have fun

Confucius thought moderate amounts of fun were acceptable.

This is backed up by modern research finding that people who engage in pleasurable activities are happier (I know, surprise surprise!).

Follow-up studies show no long-term disadvantages to a bit of short-term fun.

So there’s no point rejecting the possibility of happiness, as does ancient Chinese Buddhism, which warns that the pursuit of happiness will only end in disappointment.

5. Live healthily for happiness

Still in the land of the blindingly obvious – yes, people who are healthier are happier.

Still, just because the advice is obvious doesn’t mean it’s any less relevant, or any more likely for people to actually act on!

Despite this the self-evident nature of this advice, ancient Chinese Buddhism actually recommends physical privation.

Again, we’ll stick with Confucius on this one.

6. Meet your obligations

One of the most important aspects of ancient Chinese Confucianism is a sense of duty and responsibility.

There’s some sparse evidence from the individual level that this might lead to greater happiness.

At a societal level, however, people who live in collectivist societies, like the Chinese, tend to be less happier than those who live in individualistic societies.

This may be because collectivist societies stifle the individual’s search for self-actualisation.

7. Confucius said school yourself

You’ve guessed it, the well-educated are also happier.

On the other hand education mostly contributes to happiness by enabling you to get a better job, and lots of education doesn’t necessarily lead to more happiness.

One thing is clear though, it is better to live in a more educated society, even if others are more educated than us.

Education is partly endorsed by Taoism, while classical Buddhism advises avoiding school completely.

Again, Confucianism wins on this one.

Ancient wisdom

Perhaps it is no surprise that the man who the West knows as ‘Confucius’ is revered by many as the ‘Ancient Teacher’ and ‘Perfect Sage’.

I’m particularly impressed with the prescient quote at the top of the article.

This clearly anticipates modern research finding that we quickly get used to new positive experiences so that they no longer continue to increase our happiness.

On the other hand it’s important to note that these comparisons are made on the basis of the ancient Chinese versions of Confucianism, Taoism and Buddhism.

There is a considerable variation within each of these schools of thought – so much so that for the present purposes the modern versions might as well be completely different schools of philosophy.

Ancient Buddhism does fare badly in this comparison, but people do vary considerably in what they want from philosophical teachings.

Not everyone’s main aim in life may be to achieve happiness, some may place a higher value on different goals.

The study was published in the Journal of Happiness Studies (Zhang & Veenhoven, 2008)

Forcing A Smile Makes You Happier (M)

The expressions on our face are not just the result of our internal states, but they can also be the cause.

The expressions on our face are not just the result of our internal states, but they can also be the cause.


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33 Surprisingly Simple Things That Make People Happiest (M)

“People say that they enjoy their work, but…people are happier doing almost anything other than working.”

"People say that they enjoy their work, but...people are happier doing almost anything other than working."


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