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How to find the amazing in the ordinary and why it is useful
How to find the amazing in the ordinary and why it is useful
Anonim

Surprise makes you feel the present moment, feel yourself a part of something bigger. And this expands our perception of time and helps to enjoy life.

How to find the amazing in the ordinary and why it is useful
How to find the amazing in the ordinary and why it is useful

Astonishment Reduces Inflammation and Expands Perception of Time

Researchers at the University of California at Berkeley decided to test how surprise affects the body. To do this, they conducted an experiment: during the day, they monitored the mood of the volunteers and measured the level of cytokines in their saliva. Cytokines are molecules that help cells communicate. They signal when cells need to move to inflamed or damaged areas of the body. Elevated cytokine levels are associated with illness and depression.

It turned out that those participants who experienced positive emotions, especially surprise or admiration, had lower levels of the cytokine Positive affect and markers of inflammation: discrete positive emotions predict lower levels of inflammatory cytokines. called interleukin 6.

Surprise serves as a natural anti-inflammatory.

Activities that surprise and admire us (walking in nature, immersion in music, contemplation of art) directly affect our health.

You may think that you simply do not have time for this. But, as it turns out, surprise itself expands our sense of time. Awe Expands People's Perception of Time, Alters Decision Making, and Enhances Well-Being. … And this is also confirmed by a scientific experiment.

Scientists used videos to induce happiness or delight in participants, and then tested how these conditions affected their perception of time. Those who watched the bright video with happy people noted the feeling of time compression. And the participants of the second group, who were shown a video with admirable shots of nature, noted a feeling of temporary space.

How to find the amazing in everyday life

You can always find a moment to experience admiration and surprise. For example, even while sitting in a traffic jam. Imagine the interconnectedness of all people, how your every step depends on the actions of others. Or think how many people are experiencing the same thing as you at the same moment.

When brewing coffee in the morning, you can also find a lot of amazing things. Think about how far the coffee beans traveled before being in your kitchen, how many hands they went through, what kind of land they grew up on. Feel yourself as a link in a huge chain of people who are united by the morning ritual of making coffee.

Admiration can be caused by the most ordinary things.

Stop and pay attention to singing birds, passers-by, leaves on trees, clouds in the sky, graffiti on the walls of houses, music. Try to constantly notice these little things.

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