Happiness Is In Your Left Hemisphere

The real home of our feelings and emotions is not in the heart but in the brain. What’s more, according to recent research, much of our happiness is in the left hemisphere.

So, every time we feel excited, full of energy, positivity and hope, the area that presents the greatest neuroactivity is precisely the left prefrontal cortex.

Therefore, the theme is not without interest. Daniel Goleman spoke of this in a New York Times article and explained that in recent years neuroscience, psychology, Buddhism and spirituality have been joining ties to reach answers in seemingly distant disciplines.

It is known that in May 2000 a very productive and rewarding meeting took place. The Dalai Lama met with the best neurologists and psychologists of the day with a purpose.

Its purpose was both high and practical: to know how Buddhism deals with negative emotions, to know what goes on in the brain of a person used to practicing meditation, and to use a mental focus based on kindness, altruism and happiness .

This meeting lasted five days, in an isolated setting of Dharamsala, India. The truth is, it was very productive for one of these scientists. Dr. Richard Davidson, director of the Affective Neuroscience Laboratory at the University of Wisconsin, and author of books such as  The Emotional Profile of Your Brain, left this meeting with a working hypothesis.

Happiness is in your left hemisphere

Dr. Richardson is famous for his investigations into affective neuroscience. After years of work and analysis in his laboratory at the University of Wisconsin, he repeats in his lectures one sentence, the same comment: the basis of a healthy brain is kindness.

Today, he is president of the Healthy Minds Research Center at the same university and it is common that, from time to time, he surprises us with a new revelation.

For example, in 2008, one of his studies focused on demonstrating the relationship between neuroplasticity and meditation techniques. In other words, people used to performing this practice for a good part of their lives have greater electrical activity, greater ability to concentrate, learn and generate new neuronal connections.

On the other hand, if we look at his book The Emotional Life of Your Brain from 2012, we find one of his most interesting theories. It simply says that happiness is in your left hemisphere of your brain. Let’s look at more data on this idea.

The frontal lobes and our emotions

Throughout our evolution as a species, this mass of billions of neurons located inside our skulls has specialized. In other words, saying that happiness is in your left hemisphere is nothing more than a way of expressing how and how our positive emotions have developed over time.

• For example, not long ago it was accepted the idea that this universe of feelings and emotions was located in the most primitive area of ​​our inner brain, the same one that, some time ago, received the label “reptilian”. It is in this zone that the oldest structures, such as the limbic system, in charge of regulating all emotional processes, are located.

• However, it has been more than 30 years since neuroscience made another discovery. We already know that emotions don’t lie exclusively in the deep cavern of the brain that is the limbic system. In fact, this structure is directly connected with the frontal lobes (involved in more complex thinking, such as executive functions).

Anguish, stress and anxiety are in the right hemisphere

Dr. Richard Davidson was already starting from that base. In other words, I already knew the relationship between the limbic system and the frontal lobes. However, after a few years of research and through tests with MRIs, he could see something very interesting:

• Functional imaging revealed that when we feel distressed, stressed or depressed, the most active areas of the brain are the circuits that converge in the amygdala as well as in the right prefrontal cortex.
• This area, the right prefrontal cortex, is related to hypervigilance, something very common when we experience high stress.

The left hemisphere and positive emotions

Happiness is in the left hemisphere or, more specifically, in the left frontal lobe. Thus, when we feel more peaceful, optimistic and relaxed, the right frontal lobe is less active, in contrast to the intense neuronal activity of the left area.

This is a striking fact, a reality that neuroscience considers valid and that can undoubtedly serve to make some reflections.

If happiness is in the left hemisphere, how can I stimulate this area?

Dr. Davidson points out that, in order to modify the activity of our brain, it is best to improve our thoughts, our mental activity. This is something guaranteed by therapeutic approaches such as cognitive-behavioral therapy, ideal for treating from depression to anxieties, phobias, stress, etc.

Likewise, if happiness is in the left hemisphere and you want to “silence” this hyperactivity of the right cerebral lobe area, it is recommended to practice the following dimensions:

• Meditation;
• Kindness;
• Altruism;
• Dedicate moments of rest to yourself;
• Cultivate friendship;
• Have a goal, a motivation;
• Be enthusiastic;
• Be positive, believe in hope.

To conclude, in addition to all this, of the entire process, quality or competence, there is an aspect that we cannot leave out. We are the ones who can modify and optimize our brain processes.

We are the ones who have the obligation to walk through the most relaxed, open and flexible lifeline where we can lay the true neurological foundations of happiness.