who heads the Laboratory for Affective Neuroscience at the University of
Wisconsin, has found one distinct brain profile for happiness. As Davidson’s
laboratory has reported, when we are in distress, the brain shows high
activation levels in the right prefrontal area and the amygdala. But when we are
in an upbeat mood, the right side quiets and the left prefrontal area stirs.
When showing this brain pattern, people report feeling, as Davidson put it to
me, “positively engaged, goal-directed, enthusiastic, and energetic.”
Meditation to achieve happiness through alteration of brain function.