People escape bad feelings and stressful moments by doing things that fill them with happiness and satisfaction. For instance, taking warm baths, reading books, and taking strolls, offset negative emotions (Baumgardner & Crothers, 2013). Most of the activities create flow experiences by absorbing a person until they get lost in them. The positive experiences become memories that people can savor and enhance. I am an excellent example of those who avoid bad feelings by savoring great moments and creating flow experiences.
After stressful experiences, I always take a warm bath because it assists me in escaping things that steal my happiness. In their research, Baumgardner and Crothers (2013) discovered that people have positive thoughts when they feel comfortable. The warm water adds to the comfort of a bathtub by easing the relaxation of the body and mind. Therefore, taking a warm bath elevates my thinking until I find excellent solutions to stressful problems. I lose myself in the ideas that keep flowing into and out of my mind whenever I am relaxed. Once I leave the bathtub after cracking hard nuts, the initial state of mind does not return because the negative emotions have drowned in the warm water. Since stressful moments are inevitable, individuals should discover activities that create flow experiences for them.
It is possible to generate flow in a new activity that did not previously create a flow experience. According to Baumgardner and Crothers (2013), flow experiences result when people do not think about what they do. For instance, a person can lose themselves in many hobbies because they steal their attention from reality. The fun moments when they focus on things they love enable people to execute skills that would be impossible if they were in their conscious state of mind. Therefore, the activities that generate total absorption vary from one person to another.
I always feel great after taking a spontaneous opportunity to savor enjoyable experiences. When unplanned savoring occasions are rare, I set aside time to disengage from the long stream of thoughts (Baumgardner & Crothers, 2013). In my last savoring event, I thought about the joyful moments that my best friend and I encountered. Not only did we play beach volleyball, but we also swam for hours in The Atlantic Ocean. I enhanced the positive experience by thinking about the people, smells, and sounds that filled the beach on that beautiful day. I let my thoughts wander to anything that felt great and held on to it until the emotions faded on their own. After the savoring event, I felt happier and grateful for the beautiful memories that aid in coping with stress.
Savoring is worth the effort because it gives a greater sense of meaning to life. When we enhance positive experiences, the stress and bad feelings that make life meaningless disappear. Meaningful lives enable people to develop positive traits such as optimism, hard work, and bravery. Therefore, people should fill their days with savoring moments to escape their hectic lives and find the best qualities for stressful situations. According to Baumgardner and Crothers (2013), those who practice savoring can apply it to more aspects of life because it becomes part of their mindset. They will be much happier when the savoring events happen whenever there is a moment worth appreciating.
Those who cultivate positive emotions are happier and healthier because they can cope with stress. Creating flow experiences and savoring are some of the easiest ways of enhancing positive feelings. It is okay to get lost in activities that make us feel good and savor joyful moments to unplug ourselves from boredom and stress.
References
Baumgardner, S., & Crothers, M. (2013). Positive psychology: Pearson new international edition (1st Ed.). Pearson Education.