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BTS ⟭⟬

Translation Don’t Be Fooled by Your Brain As It Is Everyone thinks they want to be happy, but there’s nothing more difficult. That’s because the brain itself is an organ optimized for predicting and detecting danger. It was not made to fully enjoy happiness…

You might dismiss savoring as just mental consolation, but the position of neurotransmitters in your brain is clear. As demonstrated in a study published in Nature last month, when we experience something pleasant, dopamine—a neurotransmitter that encourages us to anticipate and explore the future—is released as if in a competition. If you imagine the concentration of such neurotransmitters gradually increasing each time you feel grateful or happy, there’s no reason not to savor those moments.

Number 2: find the fun and enjoyment in your life, no matter what. Albert Ellis (1913–2007), a clinical psychologist known as the father of cognitive-behavioral therapy, identified one of humanity’s most irrational beliefs: the idea that happiness will come to you without effort. It’s as absurd as expecting a YouTube channel to gain subscribers without uploading content, a foreign language skill to improve without studying, or customers to flock to a restaurant without serving any food.

Your happiness must be something you consciously decide to discover. Find it in your favorite music, in someone’s voice, in a hobby you spend time on, in physical activity, or in the rounded contours of a child’s cheek. Discover yourself in these moments, saying, "Ah, I really liked this." All these little things are the small and lovely mechanisms that help us overcome the emptiness and despair of life.

If you ask whether we really need to live this way, the answer is yes. That is what it means to be human. We are finite beings who fear disease, disaster, poverty, and isolation, and if we’re unlucky, we might suddenly find ourselves falling under the blade of misfortune. Life is so difficult that, unless we actively search for small moments of fun, we will eventually view our lives through the irrational and distorted lens of depression and anxiety, making them unbearable. Left alone, your brain will carry you along the current of negative emotions and thoughts, straight into the hell of helplessness. So don’t let your brain take you wherever it pleases.

On nights when I can’t fall asleep, I quietly think about how countless others are also unable to sleep, struggling with their own depression and anxiety. Sometimes, I feel connected to nameless people through this shared sorrow, thinking, "Everyone is struggling because they’re human." Then, I close the door on rumination, savor the texture of the blanket touching my arm, and rediscover unexpected joy in the familiar sound of my family’s breathing. In this way, I live again—not in the past, not in the future, but in this present moment.

Heo Ji-won, Professor of Psychology, Korea University

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@btsupdaters

www.tgoop.com/btsupdaters/43857

58 viewsFeb 27 at 08:46

You might dismiss savoring as just mental consolation, but the position of neurotransmitters in your brain is clear. As demonstrated in a study published in Nature last month, when we experience something pleasant, dopamine—a neurotransmitter that encourages us to anticipate and explore the future—is released as if in a competition. If you imagine the concentration of such neurotransmitters gradually increasing each time you feel grateful or happy, there’s no reason not to savor those moments.

Number 2: find the fun and enjoyment in your life, no matter what. Albert Ellis (1913–2007), a clinical psychologist known as the father of cognitive-behavioral therapy, identified one of humanity’s most irrational beliefs: the idea that happiness will come to you without effort. It’s as absurd as expecting a YouTube channel to gain subscribers without uploading content, a foreign language skill to improve without studying, or customers to flock to a restaurant without serving any food.

Your happiness must be something you consciously decide to discover. Find it in your favorite music, in someone’s voice, in a hobby you spend time on, in physical activity, or in the rounded contours of a child’s cheek. Discover yourself in these moments, saying, "Ah, I really liked this." All these little things are the small and lovely mechanisms that help us overcome the emptiness and despair of life.

If you ask whether we really need to live this way, the answer is yes. That is what it means to be human. We are finite beings who fear disease, disaster, poverty, and isolation, and if we’re unlucky, we might suddenly find ourselves falling under the blade of misfortune. Life is so difficult that, unless we actively search for small moments of fun, we will eventually view our lives through the irrational and distorted lens of depression and anxiety, making them unbearable. Left alone, your brain will carry you along the current of negative emotions and thoughts, straight into the hell of helplessness. So don’t let your brain take you wherever it pleases.

On nights when I can’t fall asleep, I quietly think about how countless others are also unable to sleep, struggling with their own depression and anxiety. Sometimes, I feel connected to nameless people through this shared sorrow, thinking, "Everyone is struggling because they’re human." Then, I close the door on rumination, savor the texture of the blanket touching my arm, and rediscover unexpected joy in the familiar sound of my family’s breathing. In this way, I live again—not in the past, not in the future, but in this present moment.

Heo Ji-won, Professor of Psychology, Korea University

#IGUpdates #Story
@btsupdaters

BY BTS ⟭⟬