Creating More Joy in Life By Avinoam Lerner Healer & Hypnotherapist

What is Joy? The emotion of great delight or happiness excited by something exceptionally good or satisfying; exhilaration of spirits; keen pleasure; elation or felicity.

What is the difference between Joy and Happiness? Joy comes from the inner-self of a person, and it is connecting with the source of life within you. Happiness is the state of being happy. It may be caused by good fortune and various other pleasures that differ from one person to the other. Happiness is a result of something that is outside of you, therefore depends on circumstance and may be momentary.

Let’s Start with Perception What is this?

  And what is this?

  And this?

It Is What It Is

Obstacles Blocking Your Joy Perception: Life is hard; dangerous and painful.    Self-Limiting Beliefs: I am not _____ enough! I can’t ___________!   Anticipation of Future/ Worry About the Past: Past failures equal future failures.   Rigidity / Control: Setting goals is positive. Forcing an outcome is stressful and limiting.   Resentment: Resentment is toxic as it keeps us separate and disconnected not only from other people, but also from the deeper part of ourselves.   Judging Ourselves and Others: By criticizing or measuring yourself and others against some standard, you limit your experience of joy.

Recognizing the Mind/Body Connection Because of the connection between emotional health and physical health, teaching ourselves to be joyful can enhance our overall health greatly. Joyful people are often healthy, both physically and mentally, they value strong positive relationships, and they lead a more stable life. Stress causes physical damage and weakens our immune system. This can lead to disease, pain and other health problems. By focusing on joyful thoughts, you can improve your immune system and enjoy other healthful impacts on all of your body’s functions.

Moving Toward More Joy Make Decisions That Support Joy: Feeling good and increasing your level of joy is something that you allow or do not allow. Take responsibility for your life and relationships. Appreciate life: contemplate nature, focus on your freedom, and enjoy your successful relationships. Have faith in something greater than yourself.   Cultivate attitudes of joy in yourself – Choose to smile when you go to sleep, and when you wake up in the morning. Count your blessings and be grateful.

It’s all within you - Stop looking for external things to provide happiness. Joy is an emotion that arises from within us and is not affected by the things that happen to us. Joy expands - as you focus on what is personally meaningful and wonderful, more of it will come. Learn from the joyful people you know - consider what sets these people apart. Notice the choices joyful people exercise. Be the Observer. Step back and look at the bigger picture. Observe your thoughts, feelings, and actions without being identified with them.

Take steps towards what you truly value - Pursue your dreams and avoid regret. Remember, joy is a choice, not a result. Do not mistake intensity for meaning, and confuse the notion of "success" with fulfillment. Resilience leads to greater joy – Resilience is the ability to bounce back from bad experiences without dwelling on them. Resilient people view failure as a learning experience. Joy is Now, Not Later - Joy is the delight you share with yourself now and each day as you think self-supportive thoughts and take self-empowering actions to create success for yourself. Permission to Feel Good - make a conscious decision that you want to be alive and you want to feel good in your life. Deciding to feel good builds new self-supporting beliefs inside of you. Those new beliefs state, "I exist, I can have what I want, I am supported, I'm good enough, and it is important for me to feel good."

Tips to Creating More Joy in Your Daily Life Do more of what you love and enjoy. Meditation has been scientifically proven to increase feel-good chemicals in the brain such as serotonin, dopamine, and endorphins. Find out what others need, and commit some time to giving it - be pro-active and make a real difference in a loved one’s life or in a charity you support. Breathe - use your breath to reconnect and center yourself and disengage your thoughts. Become present with your Inner Being. Give what you want to receive – We can't give love and share joy without experiencing them ourselves. In that way giving and receiving are one.

THANK YOU! Creating More Joy in Life - By Avinoam Lerner Tell: 866.888.0436 Email: avinoam@MindBody101.com www.HealingBeyondTherapy.com   Self-Hypnosis & Meditation CD’s and MP3’s at www.MindBody101.com – The Sound of Well-Being