Create a "Happy Trigger"

Events in your daily life trigger emotional reactions; they can trigger joy and gratitude, stress and anxiety, or even sadness and depression. Something as simple as a scent or a smile from a stranger can trigger emotions. Today I want to teach you how to create a "happy trigger" that can pull you back into a state of joy and optimism whenever you need it, regardless of other events triggering different emotional reactions.

If you read my post yesterday, Break Through Depression, then you've probably made a list of things that are working in your life and you might be wondering what to do next. Don't worry--I'll come back to that. Today, see if you can add at least one more thing to that list...

I want to teach you how to create a "happy trigger" right now because it can take some practice and I want you to start right away.

Think about a time in your life when you were truly happy. Think of your happiest memory. Close your eyes and recreate that memory in your mind with as much detail as possible. Hold it firmly in your mind; replay it a few times until that blissful emotion fills your heart completely. Now place your right hand over your heart while you replay that memory. Feel your heart beating while you experience the joy of your happiest memory. Breathe deeply and evenly. Hold your hand over your heart for three to five minutes while you focus on the emotions triggered by your happiest memory.

Repeat this exercise twice a day for a week. If you find your mind drifting, think of other happy memories to prevent boredom. As you recapture the positive emotions of your joyful memories, breathe evenly and hold your right hand over your heart. You are training your mind and creating a "happy trigger." Soon you will be able to place your hand over your heart, take deep and even breaths, and instantly experience deep feelings of happiness. It will take practice for your mind to associate the gesture of placing your hand over your heart with experiencing positive emotions, so continue to work at it every day until you are able to experience instant joy with this simple gesture.

Use this trigger to bring you back to a state of joy whenever life starts to get you down. When you're in a state of joy, it's much easier to see your life as a gift and you will find it much easier to face challenges with optimism. You can start to find and act upon solutions to your depression once you have a positive and optimistic perspective.

Depression will tempt you to hold onto pain, to wallow in it until you feel nothing else. Depression will lie to you. Depression will tell you that the slightest upset, disappointment or set back in your day means that you will never be happy and your life is worthless. Depression will tell you there's no way to restore hope, and that Monica's "happy trigger" suggestion is stupid, pointless and will never work. These thoughts can be so convincing, but they are lies. Remember: you were happy in the past which means you can be happy again! It isn't even as difficult as your depression wants you to believe.

~*~Monica Who~*~