Each person has a set point for happiness. I have seen happy rich people and happy poor people. I have seen happy disabled people and happy healthy people. I have seen happy people in small villages in Iran and happy people in LA. I can go on and on, but I think you get the point. We all have happy moments and sad moments. Events in our life can make us feel less happy for a little time. How much we become unhappy and for how long depends on us- what we focus on and what meaning we give to an event. Your brain makes you happy or sad based on your thoughts. Is it possible to be happy in the middle of a crisis? The answer is yes. Some people may say it is not normal. I would ask: compared to what? When we think about sad things, the level of certain neurotransmitters will change in certain area of the brain and we feel unhappy. The sooner we change our thoughts to happy thoughts the better for our mental, emotional and physical health. I do not mean just cover it up. I am saying to resolve it in your mind and go on with your life. Otherwise it may become a habit and you can become depressed. A major factor in depression can be habitual thought process. A depressed person’s brain wiring is different than a happy person. This has been shown in functional MRI in Montreal Canada many years ago. The researcher gave the same news to the depressed and happy individuals. The parts of the brain that were activated in these two groups were different. During the test happy people stay happier than depressed people. If we are not careful with our thoughts, after some time our brain will change to a depressed brain. Then we will be unhappy even if we could be happy.

First, the person must decide that he wants to be happy. There must be no excuse or reason that he cannot. Changing the brain is through neuroplasticity. That means that our brain is dynamic and changes all the time. But most of the time it will be restructured the same way, because we think, feel and behave the same as before. If you want to change your brain you must become conscious of being the happy person that you want to be. That means you think, feel and behave like a happy person. If you continue doing this consciously for few weeks, then it will impress on your subconscious and you will really become a happy person. You subconscious is part of the structure of your brain that has wired over time. When you subconsciously change, your brain changes, you change to a happy person. You start seeing everything from a happier perspective. The same house, family, job and all other areas of your life will feel happier.
Buddha said that “the purpose of life is joy.” What ever we want in our life, we want it because it makes us happy. Please do not wait another moment. Go do, read, watch something, listen to something that makes you happy. If you have some problems in your life (all of us do), do not be unhappy. Be happy and go solve your problems. When you are happy you will be smarter and more successful. When you are happy, your brain works better, and you make less mistakes. When you are happy, you will be healthier physically, get sick less, heal faster and you live longer.

Dr. M. Rashidi, need more help, please call or email me.