Cultivating and Maintaining Happiness

Something that I have discovered through my counselling and therapy is a greater understanding of myself. This was never something I gave a lot of time to and I figured I knew myself pretty well... but actually there was a lot I still had to learn (and undoubtedly a lot I have yet to learn).

One thing that is important to me, struggling with depression, is how to fill my life with happiness wherever possible. Recently, I have discovered that some things give you happiness and other things bring you happiness. And here's the difference:

Things that GIVE you happiness:

These are the little (or large) things in life that give you instant satisfaction and a feeling of joy. For me, these are things like the weather being beautiful, driving down country lanes with patchwork fields and brilliant, feel good much playing, laughing with friends. Those sorts of things. I've found that it is important to realise that those things give me happiness and appreciate them all the more.

Things that BRING you happiness:

This has been a new revelation for me. These are things that don't instantly give you happiness, and often the act itself can feel mundane, but that actually bring you happiness through their outcome. For me, these are things like washing up dirty dishes, having a shower, mowing the lawn etc. They are things that are, basically, a little boring and when I'm feeling low I really struggle with. That is why it's been so amazing for me to realise that these things bring me happiness and I can start to enjoy the actual act. Let me explain further; when I feel low I don't want to wash up and the pots pile up but ultimately, that actually makes me feel worse because seeing all those dirty dishes doesn't bring me joy. So now I am trying to enjoy that mundane task because I know that once they are done seeing my clean kitchen makes me feel happy and I am reaffirming that I am worth having a clean kitchen.


What things give you and bring you happiness?