How to use meditation to create happiness: 7 tips to boost joy
Clinically reviewed by Dr. Chris Mosunic, PhD, RD, MBA
Feeling down? Meditation could help. Discover 7 meditation practices that can boost your joy and cultivate lasting happiness. Plus, a guided meditation for happiness.
At the end of the day, we’re all doing our best to juggle the things that make life, well, life. From work, parenting, chores, relationships, and everything in-between, it’s no wonder our happiness can sometimes escape with our wellbeing (and even our sanity). Don’t even get us started on those unexpected curveballs that life throws our way.
So, it’s not surprising that in the middle of all this, we might feel stressed, anxious, or even just “blah,” without knowing exactly why. Staying connected to joy and happiness isn’t easy, especially when the proverbial poop hits the fan. And it might even seem out of reach sometimes. But what if we told you it’s not?
Enter meditation. Before you roll your eyes, trust us when we say there are several styles of meditation that can promote happiness. These practices are about intentionally creating a sense of joy, gratitude, and peace from within, where you tune into the things that make you feel good. These sessions can give you a quick mood boost but also retrain your mind to find and hold onto the positive moments in life.
Looking for more joy and contentment in your daily routine? We’ll show you how.
What is happiness meditation?
Happiness meditations are a series of practices aimed specifically at retraining your brain to find and hold onto more positive feelings so you can reduce negative emotions and build a happier outlook on life.
They may include visualizations, guided meditations, or specific mindfulness practices that bring a sense of joy, gratitude, and calm. People use these types of meditation to:
Shift focus from stressful or negative thoughts to positive ones
Feel a deeper sense of gratitude and appreciation for life’s simple pleasures
Experience greater relaxation, which can lead to feelings of joy and contentment
Build mental habits that contribute to long-term happiness
Why can meditation make you feel happy?
Meditation isn’t just about sitting quietly — it can be a powerful way to change how you feel from the inside out. From helping you focus on the present to letting go of thoughts that keep you from feeling joy, meditation can be an incredible tool to boost your mood.
Live in the moment
By giving yourself time to slow down, you’re helping your mind let go of stress, anxiety, and those nagging thoughts that sometimes keep you feeling down. Meditation may train the brain to focus on the present moment, which can be especially helpful, because so much of our unhappiness often comes from worries about the past or the future. When you’re truly in the moment, it’s easier to feel calm, content, and even happy.
Rewire your brain
Studies show that regular meditation can help rewire the brain’s “happiness centers,” including areas responsible for positive emotions and feelings of reward. When you meditate, you’re helping to balance our your feel-good chemicals like dopamine and serotonin, which can play a big role in lifting your mood and giving you a boost in wellbeing. These are the same chemicals that are supported by things like exercise or spending time with loved ones — only here, you’re balancing them yourself just by focusing on the positive.
Break out of negative thoughts
When you’re stressed or feeling down, it’s easy to fall into a loop of negative thinking. Meditation helps break that cycle by allowing you to observe your thoughts and emotions without judgment, and without getting stuck in them. And this can create space for more positive and joyful feelings to come forward, like you’re giving your mind a chance to reset and choose thoughts that feel lighter and more uplifting.
Boost your appreciation
Meditation also teaches you to appreciate small moments of happiness, which we often overlook in the busyness of daily life. Finding joy and appreciation in simple things, like the warmth of the sun, the taste of a favorite food, or the smile of a friend, can add up, creating a deeper sense of happiness that sticks with you, even on tough days.
This doesn’t mean you’ll never feel stressed or sad, but it does mean you’ll have a reliable way to bring yourself back to a happier place whenever you need it.
Try this guided meditation for happiness
If you’re new to meditation or happiness practices in particular, beginning with a guided meditation can be a great place to start.
Find a quiet space or pop on some headphones and try this gentle, supportive guided meditation with Tamara Levitt from the 7 Days of Happiness Series on Calm.
How to cultivate happiness through meditation: 7 ways to boost your joy
Did you know, some of the simplest practices can have the biggest impact? Here are seven approachable ways to bring more joy into your life through meditation. Each one is designed to make happiness feel more natural, steady, and lasting, no matter where you are on your meditation journey.
These small steps can add up to a big shift in your overall happiness, allowing you to enjoy life more fully and find little pockets of joy on even the busiest or most challenging days
1. Take time to practice gratitude
A gratitude meditation can be a great way to cultivate happiness in your life, and it isn’t even hard to do. To put it simply, you just bring your attention to things in your life that you’re grateful for. These don’t need to be big, life-changing things either. Something as small as a nice meal, a sunny day, or a good conversation can be a great starting point. By focusing on these little joys, you’ll train your mind to notice positive things in your day-to-day life, helping you build a happier mindset over time.
How to practice: Close your eyes, take a few deep breaths, and think of three things you’re grateful for. Visualize each one clearly, feel the appreciation for it, and let that gratitude settle in your mind and body. Practice this daily to help you feel more positive and stay connected to the gifts in your life. If you want more gratitude, explore these eight exercises.
💙 Try ending your day with a gratitude meditation like Tamara Levitt’s Drifting Off With Gratitude.
2. Visualize happy memories
Visualization can be a great tool to boost your joy. In meditation, think of a memory that brings you joy, like a vacation, a moment with friends, or a cozy afternoon spent with a good book. Imagine all the details of that memory to activate the parts of your brain associated with happiness, which can help you relive that joy in the current moment.
How to practice: Take a few deep breaths and bring a happy memory to mind. Picture the scene as vividly as possible, imagining the sights, sounds, feelings and maybe even smells from that time. Let yourself linger in these sensations, allowing any positive emotions that come up to lift your mood.
3. Share loving-kindness phrases
Also known as metta meditation, loving-kindness meditation involves silently wishing yourself and others well. Simple as that. Research shows that this form of meditation can reduce negative emotions, increase feelings of connection, and boost overall happiness.
How to practice: Send positive wishes to yourself by repeating phrases like “May I be happy, may I be safe, may I be at ease” either out loud or silently in your mind. As you feel ready, extend them to others in your life — loved ones, acquaintances, and even people you don’t know well. You can even send love to strangers you pass on a walk or in the grocery store. Notice if you feel any warmth or lightness growing in your heart as you practice, and take time to savor those feelings.
💙 Try our Loving-Kindness exercise with Tamara Levitt for step-by-step guidance on giving love to yourself and extending it to others.
4. Focus on breathing for calm and clarity
When you focus on your breath, you give your mind something simple and calming to return to, which can help reduce anxious thoughts and create a sense of peace. Even a few minutes of breath meditation can help you center yourself and let go of stress, so you can feel more balanced and open to happiness.
How to practice: Close your eyes and take a slow, deep breath in, then exhale gently. Keep focusing on each breath, noticing the sensation of the air coming in and out. If your mind wanders, just bring it back to your breathing. This can help you feel calmer and more present, which naturally supports a happier mood.
💙 Relieve stress in a pinch with help from Chibs Okereke’s SOS Breath Work guided meditation.
5. Repeat positive affirmations
Short, uplifting phrases can help you set a positive tone for your mind. When you repeat affirmations during meditation, or even throughout the day, you’re encouraging your mind to take on a more optimistic outlook, which can be especially helpful for building a happy mindset over time.
How to practice: Choose an affirmation that resonates with you, like “I am worthy of happiness” or “I feel at peace.” Repeat it slowly, either out loud or in your mind, during your meditation. Allow the words to settle in, and notice how they make you feel.
6. Notice and savor joyful sensations
One of the keys to building happiness through meditation is to fully experience the present moment, including any positive sensations you’re feeling. Appreciating something as simple as feeling the warmth of the sun, the softness of your blanket, or the calm of sitting quietly can teach you to find happiness in everyday moments. And this can make a big difference in how you feel overall.
How to practice: During meditation, bring all of your focus to any pleasant sensations you notice — maybe it’s the way the air feels, the relaxation in your body, or the peace of the moment. Let yourself fully savor these feelings to help you feel grounded and joyful.
7. End with a “joy journal”
Write down something that brought you joy or made you feel good, whether it happened during the meditation or at some point in your day. This might be a thought, an experience, or a sensation you felt. By recording these moments, you’re reinforcing them in your memory, which can make it easier to notice and appreciate joyful moments going forward.
How to practice: Keep a small notebook or digital journal handy, and jot down one thing that brought you happiness during your meditation or throughout your day. Reflect on these moments to help train your mind to focus on positive experiences, which gradually builds a more joyful outlook.
Happiness meditation FAQs
How long does it take for meditation to improve happiness?
Meditation affects everyone a bit differently, so how quickly you feel happier can vary.
For some, even a few minutes of meditation can create an immediate mood lift, like a sense of calm or a feeling of release. But to see more lasting changes in your happiness, the secret is consistency.
If you practice a happiness-boosting meditation daily for a couple of weeks and you’ll likely find your general mood improves, and things that used to bother you may start to feel less intense. That’s because even a few minutes a day can be enough to start rewiring the brain toward a more positive mindset.
Think of it like watering a plant. You might not notice big changes right away, but with regular care, you’ll eventually see more happiness blossoming in your life.
Can meditation help with long-term happiness or just short-term mood boosts?
Meditation can definitely create those nice, short-term mood boosts where you feel calmer, lighter, or more peaceful right after you meditate. But its real strength lies in how it can support long-term happiness.
When you practice regularly, meditation can help reshape the way your brain processes thoughts and emotions. This process of “rewiring” can make it easier to return to steady, positive feelings — even when life hands you challenges that bring stress, frustration, or sadness.
So while you may enjoy those short-term benefits, the biggest changes come when meditation becomes a regular part of your routine. Check out these 11 tips to help you start meditating daily.
Can meditation make you feel happier?
Meditation can help you feel happier, because it encourages the balancing of chemicals in the brain, like dopamine and serotonin, which are associated with feelings of wellbeing and happiness.
Meditation can also help you break free from negative thought patterns that might be keeping you stuck in stress or sadness. By helping you refocus on the present and cultivate positive thoughts, meditation can encourage a sense of happiness that feels grounded and real.
Over time, meditation can help you notice more good moments, feel more gratitude, and experience less emotional “noise,” so you can more easily access genuine feelings of joy.
Is it normal to feel more relaxed than joyful during happiness meditation?
Sometimes, meditation can bring up feelings of peace or calm rather than outright happiness, and those softer, more subtle sense of contentment or relief can be wonderful experiences too. Here are 12 mindfulness practices for finding inner peace.
Feeling relaxed is actually a great foundation for happiness — when your mind and body are calm, it’s easier to experience more joyful feelings as they naturally arise.
How does mindfulness help to cultivate happiness in daily life?
Mindfulness is a skill that helps you stay aware and present in each moment, which makes it easier to appreciate life’s simple joys.
When you’re mindful, you notice little things that often go overlooked, like the warmth of a morning coffee, a comforting breeze, or a moment of laughter.
This practice can help you slow down and savor these small, positive moments instead of rushing past them. And, with time, mindfulness can help retrain your mind to spot and appreciate more happy moments in your day when you might previously have focused on the bad ones.
By building this habit, you naturally create more opportunities to feel happy, which can have a lasting impact on your overall mood and sense of contentment.
Calm your mind. Change your life.
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