Find greater happiness through joy-filled connections

SALT LAKE CITY – For the first time in a long, long while, the U.S. has dropped from the World Happiness Report’s list of top 20 happiest countries. What happened? What steps can we take to find greater happiness in life?

In the latest Let’s Get Moving with Maria podcast episode, Maria Shilaos spoke with Clinical Psychologist Dr. Carla Marie Manly to learn how we can boost our mental health through joy-filled connections.

Why aren’t we as happy as we used to be?

Many people point to social media as a leading cause of the downgrade in our happiness levels. Dr. Manly says that although this is part of the reason, there are many other contributing factors such as our loss of community.

“We’re gregarious creatures. We need each other, yet we’ve become increasingly fragmented in our quest to be independent… It’s eroded the beautiful interdependence that is the hallmark of every healthy, loving relationship,” Dr. Manly said.

How can we boost our happiness?

In order to establish these much-needed relationships, we need to start by looking within ourselves. Mindfulness should be a significant part of our daily routine. Think about what you do that connects you to yourself as well as to other people. Start each day with a kind and gentle mindset.

Once you’ve eased into that mindful state, you can then turn to looking at your relationships. Focus on the ones that bring you joy and take a step back from those that are toxic. You don’t have to feel like everything has to be perfect.

“That’s the beauty of imperfect love. All that it asks us to do is try a little bit harder every day to be more aware when we make a mistake… It takes the pressure off and makes the journey so much more wonderful,” Dr. Manly said.

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