Depressed? Take Action!

“Doing even a little something to make yourself happy could bring you the real thing, say psychologists at Wake Forest University in North Carolina. They asked 50 students to record their moods during various activities. Almost any kind of outgoing behavior— talking to someone attractive or even just singing aloud—acted as an instant antidepressant. ‘Every single participant in the study was happier when he or she acted extroverted than when he or she acted introverted,’ Will Fleeson tells ABC.net. In social situations, talking more and behaving assertively made subjects happy. ‘But you can do things by yourself that work just as well,’ says Fleeson. ‘Things like going hiking, climbing a mountain, whitewater rafting.’ Too often, people think of happiness as something outside themselves. But ‘to some extent, we have control over our personalities.’ ” —The Week; Vol 3; Issue 96