Happy Hour FINDING HOPE THROUGH HAPPINESS Welcome and Gratitude - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Happy Hour

FINDING HOPE THROUGH HAPPINESS

Welcome and Gratitude Activity

Gratitude Scavenger Hunt

Find something (an item) in your house for which you are grateful and brings you joy Put into the polling what you have found, let’s see if we can find all the items as a team!

Scavenger Hunt List

* photo of person * photo of place * stuffed animal or toy * comfort item, like a blanket or pillow * food or beverage * real pet * religious item * item of clothing * phone or electronic device * jewelry * book or other reading material * toilet paper * musical item * something from nature (flower, plant, rock) * artwork or personal crafts * cards, letters, mementos, or other memorabilia

Getting through this using what we know

Happiness is a skill that can be learned

It’s going to be okay… we’ll figure it out

Things That DO Impact Happiness

Relationships Purpose and Meaning - Ikigai Gratitude Service and Altruism Fun Being Outside/Nature “Do Nothing” Time Creativity and Flow Spirituality and personal belief systems

The search for meaning

Perspectives in thinking about happiness Hedonia – pleasure seeking What do we owe ourselves? Eudiamonia – meaning seeking What do we owe each other? Are these two different areas compatible?

• Even (or especially) during a pandemic??

Science of Altruism

Many studies have indicated benefits Improves our happiness and well being Enhances connection

• Personal relationships
• Community at large

Altruism is not self-sacrifice, rather a mutually beneficial arrangement

• Personal boundaries and happiness
• Phoebe’s any selfless acts dilemma

Science of Altruism

STUDY #1 Buy yourself something or buy something for someone else Results:

• Greater happiness from buying for others
• Thinking of what they would like/need enhanced

happiness

• Making others happy also made them feel happy

STUDY #2 Spend a day on self-care activities or spend day volunteering Results:

• Work that needed done, but no interaction
• Self-Care activities
• Volunteering, but in ways that there was

interaction

• With intended recipients
• Part of a group working together

What is Joy?

Biological perspective Definitions Joy in every day life https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UctRZ91m9X A

Empathetic Joy

Experiencing joy in the world around us

Shape and Texture

Colors

Symmetry and balance

Spaciousness

Intentionality– making a choice to see Joy

Individual vs Relational Joy

What is Empathetic Joy?

Empathetic Joy - Joining in the JOY Sharing the positive or joyful experience of another person. In Buddhism (mudita), is typically defined as delight in others’ happiness or good fortune, it can also mean celebrating the virtues of others. *Different than Empathy Joy or Empathic Joy in that these are viewed at motivations for action - associated with altruism

Strategies for Practice

Individual Practices *Watching & Noticing *Joy Journal Three Good Things Image Gallery Story Collective Comic Corner *Joy Board

Relational Practices *Appreciating the joyful moments of others *Expanding the Joy In real-time Thank you *Planting Joy

Questions about Empathetic Joy

Tell us a little about yourself and how you became interested in this topic Let’s talk first about Joy. What is Joy and how is it different than happiness? What is empathetic joy and how is it different than how we think about joy typically? Talk some about the difference between sympathy and empathy? How is it experienced differently when we talk about different emotions? Can you talk more about how you’ve seen this play out, especially among the kids you work with? How is this applicable during a pandemic differently than it is in other times? Can you offer some strategies for the participants today to go practice empathetic joy?

What is one thing that brings up joy for you? Can you experience it? What is one thing you want to try this week in being happy with another? Spend some time experiencing what Joy feels like in your body Think about kindness, altruism, and feelings related to helping others find joy

References and more info

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0191886918304768? via%3Dihub Personality and Individual Differences Volume 137, 15 January 2019, Pages 147-156 Feeling your joy helps me to bear feeling your pain: Examining associations between empathy for others' positive versus negative emotions and burnout Michael R.Andreychik https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/do-our-brains-find-certain- shapes-more-attractive-than-others-180947692/ Social and Personality Psychology Compass 9/2 (2015): 57–68, 10.1111/spc3.12157 The Emerging Study of Positive Empathy Sylvia A. Morelli, Matthew D. Lieberman, and Jamil Zaki Stanford University, University of California, Los Angeles

Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci. 2012 Nov; 7(8): 909–916. Published online 2011 Dec 6. doi: 10.1093/scan/nsr073 PMCID: PMC3501705 PMID: 22156723 Can we share the joy of others? Empathic neural responses to distress vs joy Daniella Perry, Talma Hendler,and Simone G. Shamay-Tsoory https://www.lionsroar.com/how-to-practice-sympathetic-joy/ Journal of Social Issues, Vol. 72, No. 3, 2016, pp. 511--523 doi: 10.1111/josi.12179 Empathic Joy in Positive Intergroup Relations Todd L. Pittinsky∗ Stony Brook University R. Matthew Montoya University of Dayton