Do you want sustained happiness? There is a new study carried out by Cornell University psychology professor Thomas Gilovich who has proven that the path to happiness is to avoid adaptation! Now how do you do that? The answer is that you do the unusual. Your body wants adventure, travel, new experiences and new kinds of food. All of these possibilities hold the promise of a much longer lasting state of happiness held in the anticipation of new events, experiences, the having of those experiences and then the memories. I call it "Blowing off your erotic cobwebs". To wake up our happiness and our sexuality, we need to put ourselves completely in a new place. It's the secret sauce.
What is true is that humans adjust to "the new" and "happiness" very quickly. Those new boots or new phone? Remember how happy it made you? Maybe not. Things bring only momentary happiness. We adjust and it just becomes another thing. But according to this study; the same does not hold true for experiences. Maybe that's why we have throw parties; like big wedding so that we can remember the happiness of union long after the "adaptation" of living together sets in.
So, do you want sustained happiness? Stop buying and do things instead. Go on an adventure. Experience new things and new experiences. Allow yourself to be a little scared. It will wake up all of you including your libido! When we buy stuff, we have to do it over and over again to achieve happiness. But the memories of leaving home and setting out on an adventure apparently stimulates our brain and our hormones -- and the result is a happiness in the memories and experience that can stay with us much longer.
Now, whose coming with me on my next adventure?
Pamela Madsen runs retreats around the world to help women re-connect to their bodies and sensuous nature and is author of the book; "Shameless: How I Ditched The Diet, Got Naked, Found True Pleasure and Somehow Got Home in Time to Cook Dinner" (Rodale 2011).
Check out Pamela's free library of sexuality and relationship videos here.
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