Dancing Makes Me Happy

by Amanda Granados
(Lima, Peru)

When I am feeling down and not as happy as usual, I like to reset my life. By resetting my life I mean stepping outside of the issues that are bothering me and starting new.

Rather than this being a cliché, I do a complete hobby makeover, and get involved in brand new activities as though I were a child learning new games. It’s incredible how well this process works!

Opening up to new hobbies reminds me of the joys of childhood, and can produce a youthful vigor that can be wonderful for relieving my stress.

One of the benefits of trying something new over something I know well is the fact that new activities require far more attention and perseverance than my normal hobbies. Because I am far more familiar with my existing hobbies, sometimes the worries that I am trying to get an escape from are still on my mind.

Alternatively, new hobbies that I am trying require my focused attention, because I am constantly learning and trying to repeat key steps during the early period of the new hobby. This keep my mind free of concerns, at least for the time being.

A recent example of this was stress related to both work and an illness among my immediate family. I really needed to reset, and an opportunity arose to take dancing lessons. I did this, and the two hours (twice per week) that I would attend the lessons gave me a chance to exercise my heart and mind.

Because the steps in salsa dancing are so specific, I did not have a single opportunity to think of all of the other stressors in my life. The dancing was just plain fun, and dramatically increased my level of happiness.

Another benefit of starting new hobbies when you are stressed is the introduction of new friends and acquaintances that is common with these activities. Because I often form friendships with those that either work with me or share hobbies with me, by not expanding our hobbies I am limiting my sphere of friendships.

Using a brand new hobby to help alleviate stress also allows me to expand my social horizons, and get to know new people.

New hobbies are a great way for me to relieve stress, learn new things, and get me back to the happy state of being that I am usually in. I remember a quote by my grandmother who said "Don’t just try to be happy, happiness is a state of being".

Constantly taking up new hobbies and expanding my social circle is the way that I try to stay in that great state of being that my grandmother used to talk about.