“We weren't ready, and she wasn't either. What I didn't consider at the time was that you might never be ready until it's to an unbearable point.” — from our episode The Ventilator
BRAIN WAVES
Oh, happy day. What does it take to live a happier life? In 2018, researchers at the University of Bristol launched a "Science of Happiness" course. It involved exercises to boost well-being (think gratitude lists, exercise, meditation, and journaling). A long-term follow-up with students who took the course found that its effectiveness depended on consistent practice. Those who continued applying the course's teachings maintained improved levels of wellbeing over time. “This study shows that just doing a course – be that at the gym, a meditation retreat or on an evidence-based happiness course like ours – is just the start,” said senior author Bruce Hood (who’s also a former Hidden Brain guest). “Much of what we teach revolves around positive psychology interventions that divert your attention away from yourself, by helping others, being with friends, gratitude or meditating,” Hood said. “This is the opposite of the current ‘selfcare’ doctrine, but countless studies have shown that getting out of our own heads helps gets us away from negative ruminations which can be the basis of so many mental health problems.”
Do you feel seen? We all want to be understood, and new research shows that the best relationships are those in which we feel, well, “seen.” The study, led by Juliana Schroeder and Ayelet Fishbach, found that feeling known by a partner is even more crucial to relationship satisfaction than feeling you know your partner well. In other words, we are happiest with people who seem to understand us most. “I really liked the way that Adam Grant framed this research,” said Schroeder at PsyPost. “It extrapolates a little from the data but gets the idea exactly right. He wrote: ‘It’s good to be interesting. It’s better to be interested. We gravitate toward people who want to understand us. Feeling seen is core to feeling loved.’ I hope that’s the sentiment people take away from this work.”
Smarter than you think. From the time we’re schoolchildren, we’re ranked and sorted based on how smart we are. But what if our assumptions about intelligence limit our potential? Listen to learn more.
ON THE HIDDEN BRAIN PODCAST
The Ventilator: Many of us believe we know how we’d choose to die. We have a sense of how we’d respond to a diagnosis of an incurable illness. This week, we revisit a 2019 episode featuring one family’s decades-long conversation about dying. What they found is that the people we are when death is far in the distance may not be the people we become when death is near..
ON THE MY UNSUNG HERO PODCAST
River Adams’ Story: After fleeing to the US from the Soviet Union, River’s family was struggling to survive. Then a kind gesture changed everything.
Don’t forget to send us the story of your unsung hero! Record a voice memo on your phone and email it to [email protected].
MIND GAMES
Alice came across a lion and a unicorn in a forest of forgetfulness. The lion lies every Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, and the other days he speaks the truth. The unicorn lies on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays. The other days of the week he speaks the truth. “Yesterday I was lying,” the lion told Alice. “So was I,” said the unicorn. What day is it?
LAST WEEK’S PUZZLE
If a shirt costs $20 more than a hat, and the combined cost of both the shirt and the hat is $50, how much does the hat cost?
Answer: $15
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Hidden Brain is now a game! Do you struggle to recognize people after you've met them? Do you like games and puzzles? If so, you should try Hidden Brain Daily Challenge, our new app available on Apple iOS! It features our very first game, designed to help improve your facial recognition skills. Check it out here.
A MOMENT OF JOY
Have an idea for Hidden Brain? A story you want to share with us? Send an email to [email protected]. Listen to us on Spotify, Apple, Amazon Music or your favorite podcast platform.
