The Production Of Joy In The Left Hemisphere

Contrary to many people’s beliefs,  our emotions do not come from the heart, but from the brain. New studies show that we can find a large part of our joy in the left hemisphere. Every time we get excited, full of energy, positive and hopeful, it is the left prefrontal cortex that accounts for the greatest neural activity.

That’s pretty interesting. Daniel Goleman talked about this in an article from the  New York Times,  where he explained that  disciplines such as psychology, Buddhism and spirituality work together  to find answers to many questions about man.

In May 2000, an encouraging and productive meeting took place. The Dalai Lama met with the best psychologists and neurologists of the time with one purpose. It was a difficult but practical purpose: How Buddhism dealt with negative emotions. They would also find out what happened in a person’s brain when they meditated and focused on kindness, altruism and joy.

They spent five days together in Dharamshala, India. It was a very productive meeting for one researcher in particular,  Dr. Richard Davidson. He is the director of the Affective Neuroscience Laboratory at the University of Wisconsin and author of  The Emotional Life of Your Brain. He left the meeting with a hypothesis:

We find joy in the left hemisphere

Dr. Davidson is known for his research in affective neuroscience. He repeats a single sentence during all his conferences:  The key to a healthy life is a healthy mind. Today, he is president of the Center of Healthy Minds at the same university.

In 2008, he conducted a study to  show the relationship between neuroplasticity and meditation techniques. He wanted to see if people who had meditated for a large part of their lives had greater electrical activity and better ability to concentrate.

His most interesting theories can be found in his book  The Emotional Life of Your Brain , published in 2012. In the book, he shows that  joy occurs primarily  in the left hemisphere. Let’s take a closer look at this.

Frontal lobes and emotions

Many studies have been made of the neuron-filled mass that lies in our skull. To say that we find joy in the left hemisphere is a way of explaining how our positive emotions have evolved over time.

• Until recently, people believed that emotions came from the most primitive part of the brain, also called the reptilian brain. Here we find the oldest structures such as the limbic system. The limbic system is responsible for  regulating all emotional processes.
• However, neuroscience made a new discovery more than 30 years ago. We already know that emotions do not come exclusively from the limbic system, which is the deep area of ​​the brain. In fact, this structure is directly connected to the frontal lobes, which are structures that are  involved in more complex thought processes.

Brush, stress and anxiety are located in the right hemisphere of the brain

Dr. Richard Davidson already had this in mind. He already knew the connection between the limbic system and the frontal lobes. However, after years of research and MRI scans, there was something that caught his attention:

• The functional images showed that when we feel pain, stress or depression, the most active parts of the brain are the processes that take place in the tonsil nucleus and the right prefrontal cortex.
• The right prefrontal cortex is associated with extreme alertness,  something we experience during violent stress.

The left hemisphere and positive emotions

We produce joy in the left hemisphere, or more specifically, in the left frontal lobe. When we are calm, optimistic, relaxed and hopeful, the right frontal lobe begins to lower the activity level due to the intense neuroactivity that occurs in the opposite lap. It is a very important and remarkable discovery that neuroscience has confirmed.

If we create joy in the left hemisphere, then how can we stimulate this area?

Dr. Davidson stated that in order to adjust our brain activity, the best thing we can do is  improve our thoughts and general mental activity. This is something that the  cognitive behavioral method  supports, as it is often used to treat anxiety, depression, phobias and stress.

If we produce joy in the left hemisphere, and you want to “mitigate” the great activity in your right frontal lobe, we recommend exploring the following:

• Meditation.
• Kindness.
• Altruism.
• Give yourself time to relax.
• Cultivate friendships.
• Set yourself a goal (get motivated).
• Be enthusiastic.
• Be positive and hopeful.

No matter where a particular process, quality or ability comes from, there is one aspect we must always keep in mind. Only ourselves can adjust and optimize our mental activity. It is ourselves who must want to live a happier, more flexible and open life. We must give ourselves the opportunity to lay the authentic neurological foundation of happiness.