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要想长寿最关键是增加幸福感
作者 克里斯汀.韦伯 （Christine Webber)
Is there a person on the planet who doesn’t want to be happy? Probably not. After all, happiness makes life more pleasant. And studies show that contented humans live longer than miserable ones, and are less inclined to turn to crime and much more likely to form relationships.
在这个世界上有人不希望自己幸福吗？可能没有。毕竟过得幸福能让生命之旅更加愉悦。而且研究表明那些过得如意的人比不如意的人更长寿，犯罪机率更低，社会关系更稳定。
Happiness is a hot topic. Various governments, including our own, are bent on measuring it. This is because they’ve woken up to scientific claims that happy adults are more productive – and are therefore good for the economy.
幸福是一个热门话题。各国政府，包括咱们的，都喜欢去衡量人民的幸福指数。这是因为科学研究让他们意识到快乐的成年人更具生产力，这有益于社会经济发展。
But isn’t it unnatural to be happy all the time? As one of my depressed clients recently asked: ‘Aren’t I entitled to be sad if I want to be?’
那么做个幸福的人不从来都是人之天性吗？我有一个心情不好的客户，最近就问了我一个问题“我不是想难过，就可以难过吗？
Mood swings: Scientific evidence suggests that we can learn to improve our mood - by actually changing our brains
心情变化：科学研究建议我们学习通过改变我们的大脑来改善我们的心情。
Of course, in her case her illness meant that, at first, she was very resistant to treatment – psychotherapy takes hard work and some tough self-examination. But it did make me think: should we just accept unhappiness as a natural state of being?
当然，在她的那个案例里，她的问题是疾病，刚开始，她对治疗非常抗拒-心理治疗要投入很多努力，还有艰难的自我测试。但是这让我思考：难道我们就应理所当然地去接受不快乐吗？
The answer is no. True happiness is not about being perpetually chirpy. But neither does it have much to do with the momentary ecstasy we might feel when our team scores a goal, or we make an impulse buy of some lovely shoes.
回答是不。真正的幸福不是永远快乐，也和我们感到的短暂快乐比如团队成绩达标，或者冲动买了一些可爱的鞋子无关。
It’s about a deeper sense of contentment and, and about valuing ourselves, and others. It’s also about looking for positives in situations, and feeling confident that we have the resilience to deal with life’s reverses. And this, I believe, is achievable for all.
幸福是较深层次的满足感，认同自我价值及其它。它也需要以积极的心态看问题，有信心可以在生活发生颠覆后恢复正常。这些，我相信我们所有人都可以做得到。
Awful events happen – even to the most optimistic of us. And being a happy person does not prevent anguish and heartbreak when your dog dies, or you lose your job, or when you have problems with a partner.
糟糕的事情会发生-即使我们保持最乐观的态度。做一个幸福的人，并不是说要你在你的狗死了，或者你失业了，或者你和合作者之间出了状况时，你都不可以痛苦心碎。
On the other hand, individuals who are optimistic do tend to deaL with life’s downturns better than people with a less upbeat default setting.
另一方面，那些乐观积极的人比消极的人更容易度过生命中的逆境。
The Greek Stoic philosopher Epictetus said: ‘It’s not things that upset us, it’s our view of things.’ In a similar vein, one might argue: ‘It’s not people or events that make us happy.’ Happiness actually involves our own attitudes and choices.
希腊斯多葛学派哲学家埃皮克提图说:“让我们烦恼的不是发生的事情,而是我们思考事情的方式”。类似，还有一个说法是“使我们快乐的不是别的人或别的事”，幸福实际上取决于我们自己的态度和如何选择.
It’s marvellous if someone loves us, or we get a promotion; and it’s natural that such benefits augment our happiness. But none of us should regard these sorts of events as essential to our contentment. When we do, we live in dread that they will be snatched away.
被爱或者升职都是非常美妙的事情;而且很自然这些好事会增加我们的幸福感.但是我们不可以依赖这些来满足自我. 否则,我们将患得患失, 怕这些好运会离我们而去.
It's an attitude: Happiness is much more than just the momentary ecstasy we feel in joyous occasions, but more about a deeper sense of contentment
这是一种态度: 幸福不只是沉迷于短暂的快乐, 而是指更深层次的满足感.
Scientific evidence now suggests that any of us can learn to improve our mood. And we can do that by changing our brains.
科学证明我们都可以改善我们的心情.而且我们可以改变自己的大脑.
Less than two decades ago, it was commonplace to believe that the brain was fully formed by the age of 25 and that it couldn’t develop or grow after that. But now, thanks to developments in neuroscience, we know that the brain can form new neural connections through life. And we also know that when a person deliberately thinks of something joyful, the brain becomes more active in the part of its structure that registers happiness.
差不多二十年前,人们普遍相信大脑在25 岁以后已经定型，不可改善或再发育了。但是现在由于系统神经学的发展，我们知道大脑在整个一生里都可以形成新的神经网络。 而且我们知道当一个人刻意去想些快乐的事，那么大脑中记忆幸福的部位就会更活跃。
It’s not too far-fetched to believe that if we keep thinking cheerful thoughts, we can exercise and grow the happy section of our brain.
不会太难去理解，如果人们不断地想快乐的事情，那么就可以锻炼和促进我们脑中掌管快乐的部位成长。
Italian psychiatrist Professor Giovanni Fava encouraged his patients to keep ‘un diario della felicità’ (happiness diary). He found that once people wrote down details of positive moments, happy feelings took root in their minds.
意大利精神病学家吉奥瓦尼.法瓦(Giovanni Fava) 鼓励他的病人坚持写“快乐日记”。他发现当人们写下度过的快乐时光中的细节, 幸福感就在脑中生根发芽.
I’ve used this strategy with my own patients. When one, whom I shall call Frances, came to me she was anxious, chaotic and fed up – and prone to complaining about everything.
我也采取了这个策略来治疗我的病人。 曾经有个叫弗朗西斯的女孩，刚来看我时，她忧心忡忡、脑子混乱，极度烦躁，不停地抱怨身边所有的事情。
And she was single, despite her best efforts to meet a partner. I persuaded her to notice five happy things daily – and to write them down. And I asked her to cheer up bad moments by remembering pleasurable incidents.
而且尽管她使尽全力想要寻找一个伴侣，还是没找到。我说服她每天留意五件快乐的事情并记录下来。请她每当不高兴的时候就想想那些快乐的事情来改善心情。
Within weeks, she began to view life more positively.
经过几周的治疗，她开始较积极地思考生活.
In our last session, she told me that she felt much more content. Soon afterwards, she rang to say that she’d met a wonderful man.
在治疗的最后阶段，她告诉我她觉得比以前要感到满足多了。之后很快，她打电话告诉我她找到了意中人。
In his book Science Of Happiness, physicist Stefan Klein says: ‘Unhappiness comes on its own, but we have to work for happiness.’
物理学家斯坦芬.科兰赖（Stefan Klein)在他的《幸福科学》中写到：“不幸会不请自来，但是我们仍需尽力让自己幸福。”
Frances found this to be true... and it turned her life around.
弗朗西斯发现这是真理，而且这改变了她的整个生活。
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