Are you reminiscing about times past and struggling to hold on to hope that you will be able to do the things you once loved, again? Maybe it’s the holiday you went on last year at this time, or the one you had planned.
No doubt we are in unprecedented times with many of us worried about our mental health as we try to adapt to our new normal and reminisce about times past. At the moment, we are being asked not to book holidays, not to make plans with our friends and family, unable to go to the gym or enjoy that peaceful coffee in a café alone (without the kids), with each weekend being a version of the one just past. For many of us this has brought about feelings of sadness and fear about what the future may hold and when we will be able to freely move about again between borders and countries. This is a time of grief as we reflect on the past and the feelings of joy and happiness we experienced in our outings and our travels. Facebook memories is a timeless yet saddening reminder in this climate. The anticipation of happier times past is that, times past.
What we are talking about here is the power of anticipation and how that contributes to our psychological wellbeing. For example, have you ever booked and paid for a holiday and felt this overwhelming sense of pure excitement and joy? Have you ever made plans with a friend after not seeing each for so long and feel excited? Do you remember that feeling before your very first kiss with your partner or loved one? This feeling is known as ‘positive anticipation’ and is a vital ingredient to psychological wellbeing.
When we have something positive to look forward to in our future we get feelings of joy, excitement, happiness which all bolster our psychological wellbeing. Contrast this to how you feel when you are heading to the doctor to get a flu shot, or walking on stage to present to your peers. While everyone is different in what they positively or negatively anticipate, the research in positive psychology and the links to wellbeing is clear. Positive anticipation with the guarantee of a reward at the end can have a very positive effect on our wellbeing.
A famous study by the Economist George Lowenstein (Lowenstein, 1987) examined how anticipation affects the value people place on something they would obtain in the future. In this study subjects were asked how much they would be willing to pay to get a kiss from a movie star of their choice, with subjects randomly allocated to one of five conditions: receiving the kiss immediately, receiving the kiss after one day, receiving the kiss after two days, a year or ten years. What would you choose? Most would think that subjects would want to be gratified immediately or maybe after a day so they had time for grooming, to buy a new outfit etc. What Lowenstein and his team discovered is that subjects were willing to wait THREE WHOLE DAYS! What does this tell us? That the anticipation of something pleasurably has value to us!
In other studies of brain activity of people experiencing ‘negative’ events to ‘positive events’ shows that those exposed to the positive stimuli had greater amygdala responses to positive stimuli (Cunningham and Kirkland, 2014), and greater ventral anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) responses to negative stimuli (van Reekum et al., 2007). The ACC plays an important role in completing tasks and is required for effort and motivation along with early learning and problem solving. What does this really mean for us? In effect, it explains why negative events and exposure to negative stimuli can be so de-motivating and sometimes cause a temporary paralysis or loss of focus in overcoming challenges. This absolutely speaks to the power of mindset.
So how do we build positive anticipation under isolation and the current COVID circumstances? Don’t lose hope for your big dreams and plans or major life events. Keep planning for them. It’s important to work towards our big goals and dreams, but it’s important in this climate to focus on what we can control in the here and now and the short term goals, not what may come 1-5 years from now. Lowenstein’s research tells us that we don't have to plan something far in to the future to increase our psychological wellbeing. We can build positive things in to our week and reap the benefits and results of the sheer “anticipation’ of joy.
It really is simple, give yourself something to look forward to! Some ideas include:
1. Make a date with yourself each day- Pick one small thing you can do each day that brings you joy and schedule it in! It could be anything from having a bath, reading a chapter in a book, putting on some music and dancing (with or without the kids) and COMMIT to it
2. Make a virtual date- so facetime or Zoom with a friend or family member
3. Make a date at home with your loved one- Pick a day and recreate a restaurant experience at home (set the table with candles, order some take away, get dressed up and just be with your loved one).
4. Meal plan for your favourite meal- Order take away from your favourite little cafe or restaurant once a week. Boosts your wellbeing while supporting local families and businesses.
You may be able to think of many more! How can you create the smaller moments of joy in your day and week that will give you something to look forward to? Whatever you decide, the research is clear. Be creative and schedule it in, making sure that you follow through too as that is the fun part!
And finally, keep on making those long term travel plans. We know that the tourism industry will need us after this is "over". While we may have to adapt to a new normal, one thing that has remain unchanged is the natural wonders of the world. They are ready and waiting, when we are!
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#positivewellbeing #positiveanticipation #joy #happiness #COVID #COVID19 #wellbeing #mentalhealth #positivementalhealth #anticipation #neuroscienceofwellbeing
References:
Cunningham, W. A., and Kirkland, T. (2014). The joyful, yet balanced, amygdala:
moderated responses to positive but not negative stimuli in trait happiness. Soc.
Cogn. Affect. Neurosci. 9, 760–766. doi: 10.1093/scan/nst045
Loewenstein, G. (1987) “Anticipation and the Valuation of Delayed Consumption”, Economic Journal, Vol. 97, No. 387, pp. 666–684.
Van Reekum, C. M., Urry, H. L., Johnstone, T., Thurow, M. E., Frye, C. J., Jackson,
C. A., et al. (2007). Individual differences in amygdala and ventromedial
prefrontal cortex activity are associated with evaluation speed and psychological
well-being. J. Cogn. Neurosci. 19, 237–248. doi: 10.1162/jocn.2007.
19.2.237
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