My husband recently bounded in the door after a routine neurologist visit. Now that sounds a bit odd (after all, what is routine about a neurologist visit?), but he had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, a condition that depletes his body’s dopamine supply, so he sees his neurologist routinely. While he is faring very well…as I certainly expected knowing the overachiever nature of my dear spouse…he does worry what the future holds.

His “bounding” came from a good visit where the physician felt his symptoms were under control…no change in meds…no serious concerns. He was in good spirits and relayed the one recommendation the physician had for him…do things that make you happy.

A bit of a weird prescription, don’t you think… “Take two tabs of joy and call me in the morning.” He was not telling him that because he has a short time to live and should make every moment count (nope, I plan on having him around for a very long time), but purely because happiness increases dopamine levels. So as it turns out, Bobby McFerrin was right…

My husband is the glass-half-empty kind of guy. We have had a wonderfully happy union, yet there are times when I have to remind him of this. In another post, Get You’re A#% In Gear!, I described his first tattoo, the Chinese symbol for JOY. I told him “You’re always complaining that you have no joy in your life. Now, you will see joy every day.” Chinese joy, but joy just the same.

His prescription for happiness was received on the official International Day of Happiness, March 20^th.

Global Happiness…

 

This is a real thing…a celebration of happiness established by the United Nations General Assembly on June 28, 2012. Why does the United Nations think we should celebrate happiness?   It turns out there is good reason to “recognize the relevance of happiness and well-being as universal goals and aspirations in the lives of human beings around the world and the importance of their recognition in public policy objectives.” (UN Resolution 66/281).

National Happiness…

Lets take a moment and silently thank good old Thomas Jefferson for adding the unalienable right to the pursuit of happiness in our Declaration of Independence. Great job, Tom! You were really on to something!

In the United States, as in most countries, we seem to define our “happiness” in economic terms—the pursuit of material goods…called the Gross Domestic Product (GDP).  And we even have a term for it…RETAIL THERAPY. Feeling a bit stressed? Better head to that Godiva kiosk. Having the blues of late? Time for a new pair of shoes!

When we feel bad about the economy (think the Great Recession of 2007), our government leaders encourage us to shop ‘til we drop. “Honey, I was just doing my civic duty at the mall today.” Never mind that when the bills come in, you just might feel…well…less than happy. Just go out and buy yourself a new set of golf clubs!

There is one place on this planet that uses a different measure.  The Kingdom of Bhutan, a South Asian country in the Himalayas, initiated the UN global happiness resolution. Bhutan has the distinction of being the happiest country in Asia and the 8th happiest in the world (Denmark was ranked 1st, US ranked a lousy 23rd “due to nagging poverty and spotty health care”). So why didn’t Denmark start the movement instead of that tiny Kingdom? Bhutan is unique, as all the economic factors used to measure gross domestic product (unemployment, agriculture, retail sales, etc.) are analyzed for their impact on its residents’ happiness – called the Gross National Happiness (GNH) index. To the Bhutanese, happiness matters most, not money. Public policy follows as decisions are based on the happiness-based economy rather than a consumption-based one.

Individual Happiness…

Buddhist principles teach us that happiness is our birthright.

According to B. Alan Wallace in Buddhism with an Attitude: The Tibetan Seven-Point Mind-Training, happiness is a birthright that just needs to be discovered by stopping behavior that encumbers innate contentment. Hmmm, may be easier sang then done (with apologies to Paul Simon):

[box]

The problem is all inside your head they said to me

The answer is easy if you take it Buddhist…ly

We’d like to help you in your struggle to be free

There must be fifty ways to make you happy

 

You just throw out the blues, Hugh; get a new job, Bob

You don’t need stress, Bess; just make yourself smile.

Go for a hike, Mike; you don’t need to be anxious much

Let go of the strain, Wayne; and get yourself free

[/box]

Unfortunately, it can be tough to give up all the baggage that leads to our winter (spring, summer, fall) of discontent. It would be nuts to arrogantly say “Snap out of it!”

But…wouldn’t it be lovely to just walk away from the unhappiness? To spark those happy neurotransmitters? Let’s spark some right now…cause I am happy when watching people of age dance and laugh their a#%s off.

Our Happiness…

[box] RX:   Do things that make you happy.[/box]

With mental prescription in hand, my partner in life is determined to turn around any pessimistic, curmudgeon, glass-half-empty tendencies…with my help of course. Why me? I am his optimistic opposite. I am as happy as a dog with two tails!

Half-empty, half-full. Together we make a tall flute of sparkling dry Prosecco… oooommm, something that give us both joy!

Share your thoughts…tell me what gives you joy.

 

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