Positive Psychology:The Science of Happiness

Bridging Ivory Tower and Main Street

The objective of positive psychology is to unite the rigor of academic research with the accessibility of the self-help movement.

The Permission to be Human

Unconditional Acceptance

• Paradox• Not resignation• Active acceptance

Dealing With Stress

Time Out!

“In a recent national survey of 13,500 college students, nearly 45 percent reported being so depressed that they had difficulty functioning, and 94 percent reported feeling overwhelmed by everything they had to do.”

Richard Kadison

Too muchto do

Stress (feelingOverwhelmed)

Depression

The Cost of Stress

• Psychological health• Physical health• Reduced productivity and creativity

Simplify!

“If we can help people to simplify their lives, thus reducing their stress levels, it is very likely that people’s relationships would be enriched greatly. Moreover, the positive aspects of their lives would be enriched accordingly.”

Susan & Clyde Hendrick (2002)

• Do less, not more (quantity affects quality)• Time Affluence (Versus Material Affluence)• The need for recovery

The Mind-Body Connection

Overcoming Depression (Babyak et al. 2000)

• 156 patients with Major Depressive Disorder• Three groups (exercise, medicine,

exercise*medicine)• Anti-depressant: SSRI• Exercise: Thirty minutes three times/week

Overcoming Depression (Babyak et al. 2000)

• Results (16 weeks):– All three groups improved (>60%)– No significant differences among groups

• 10 months follow-up– Relapse medication: 38%– Relapse medication*exercise: 31%– Relapse exercise: 9%

• Not exercising is like taking depressants

Exercise: The Unsung Hero

“In a way, exercise can be thought of as a psychiatrist’s dream treatment. It works on anxiety, on panic disorder, and on stress in general, which has a lot to do with depression. And it generates the release of neurotransmitters—norepinephrine, serotonin, and dopamine—that are very similar to our most important psychiatric medicines. Having a bout of exercise is like taking a little bit of Prozac and a little bit of Ritalin, right where it is supposed to go.”

John Ratey

Mindfulness Meditation• One-pointedness• Deep breathing• No good/bad meditation

The Mind of a Meditator• Left-to-right ratio in prefrontal cortex

• Left-to-right ratio in prefrontal cortex• The startle response

The Mind of a Meditator

“Given that the larger someone’s startle, the more intensely that person tends to experience upsetting emotions, Oser’s performance had tantalizing implications, suggesting a remarkable level of emotional equanimity.”

Daniel Goleman

Mindfulness Meditation (Kabat-Zinn)• Decrease in anxiety• Mood change• Pre-frontal cortex activation• Immune response

Breathing

Shallow breathing

Stress/Anxiety

Deep breathing

Calm/wellbeing

“If I had to limit my advice on healthier living to just one tip, it would be simply to learn how to breathe correctly.”

Andrew Weil

Focusing on the Positive

Must something external and extraordinary happen before we learn to appreciate the ordinary?

Research on Gratitude

• Emmons and McCullough (2002)– Four groups: gratitude, hassles, superior, control– Psychological and health benefits

• Maintaining freshness through mindful focus

“I wondered how it was possible to walk for an hour through the woods and see nothing of note. I who cannot see find hundreds of things: the delicate symmetry of a leaf, the smooth skin of a silver birch, the rough, shaggy bark of a pine. I who am blind can give one hint to those who see: use your eyes as if tomorrow you will have been stricken blind. Hear the music of voices, the songs of a bird, the mighty strains of an orchestra as if you would be stricken deaf tomorrow. Touch each object as if tomorrow your tactile sense would fail. Smell the perfume of flowers, taste with relish each morsel, as if tomorrow you could never taste or smell again. Make the most of every sense. Glory in all the facets and pleasures and beauty which the world reveals to you.”

Hellen Keller