Happiness On Demand

Hello Reader,

A quick PSA before we begin!

These newsletters tend to be on the longer side and come out about every two weeks. If that's just the right amount of reading for you, wonderful!

And these newsletters and the content on my website isn't going anywhere.

But I'm currently having a lot of fun with the conversations happening on Substack, where I share bite-sized thoughts and ideas almost every day.

The majority of my posts there are free to read and comment on.

So, if you'd like more frequent reading, want to join the conversation, or simply feel like having a chat, come find me on Substack!​

Ok, PSA over, back to the scheduled programming.

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Healing is inherently holistic

With everything that I've experienced, I've come to realize that the human body and the mind are systems. To be more precise, us humans consist of three parts: body, mind, and spirit.

Think of it however you will, but those are the three parts that make a whole human being. Spirit you can think of as the unconscious or the subconscious mind; the part of you that’s aware while you dream. The part of you that runs all the autonomous processes such as cell renewal, breathing, etc.

The spirit exists, whether you acknowledge it or not. But your life will be so much more in your control if you acknowledge the existence of your spirit. And somewhat understand how it works.

In any case, we are mind/body/spirit systems. System being defined as: an assemblage or combination of things or parts forming a complex or unitary whole.

The keyword is: whole. Your body, mind, and spirit are parts of a complex and unitary whole. One part cannot exist or function without the other.

Therefore, health, healing, and life itself become holistic by definition.

Addressing just one part of your body/mind/spirit system may not be enough to heal you - you must take into account the whole.

Another critical trait of a system is that when it’s aligned, it works as intended.

When all parts of the system are aligned, everything within the system works like clockwork. But when things get out of alignment, that’s when problems arise.

This is true for systems such as governments, nations, or, you guessed it, body/mind/spirit systems that you are made of.

Health is supposed to be the baseline

Health, as I’ve claimed many times, is the baseline. That should be the “default” state of being.

When your body/mind/spirit system is aligned, it works beautifully; you are happy and healthy. When things get out of alignment, that manifests as disease within the body or the mind, or both. (Since health is inherently holistic, it’s both.)

But it’s important to realize that wounds must be addressed on the level at which they have occurred.

The cut in your hand is a physical wound and should be treated on the level of your body.

Anxiety happens on the level of the mind, and that’s where it should be treated, and so on.

This is the takeaway: Health = body/mind/spirit system in alignment. When any part of that system gets out of alignment, that’s when problems occur within the system.

Reasons for misalignment are countless, but there is good news:

Your body/mind/spirit system naturally seeks to align itself.

You are literally wired for health.

Of course, oftentimes, it doesn’t feel like that at all. So what gives?

Understanding your true nature

Here’s something that should make this concept of “alignment” easier to understand:

Imagine you have a dog (you don’t have to imagine if you have one, of course :) )

You know it needs suitable food, exercise, time outdoors, rest, stimulation, and opportunities to express its natural instincts. You wouldn't expect it to spend every day indoors, eat only “human food”, and never play, then wonder why it seems unhappy.

You understand that when its needs aren't met, its well-being can suffer. It may become stressed, restless, withdrawn, or develop behavioral problems.

In fact, this is most likely what happens.

But you wouldn't necessarily conclude that something is fundamentally wrong with the dog. You'd first look at its needs and the conditions in which it lives.

Now,

What if we applied the same thinking to ourselves?

We humans, have needs, too. We need to care for our bodies, engage our minds, connect with others, and express our creativity. We need rest, movement, meaningful experiences, and opportunities to process our emotions.

Yet we often neglect these needs…

while expecting ourselves to feel good anyway.

We sit indoors for hours, consume an endless stream of information, neglect meaningful connection, and suppress emotions we'd rather not feel.

Then, when we become anxious, exhausted, or unhappy, we assume we need to fix ourselves.

This is what I mean when I talk about our “alignment” or returning to our “factory settings”.

Not that we're guaranteed to feel happy or healthy all the time, but that we have basic needs and natural capacities that support our well-being.

Our bodies, minds, and spirits have a baseline that’s very natural to them, if we allow them to function the way they were intended to function.

When we consistently neglect what our body, mind, and spirit need, distress will follow.

But when we begin to understand and meet them, we create better conditions for well-being to emerge.

Ok, now let’s take a look at the body, mind, and spirit and their functions and needs.

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1. Body: Experience

Your body is how you experience physical reality. Through your senses, you experience the world around you. Through movement, you interact with it.

And for your body to function, it needs these basics (in the order of importance from highest priority to lowest):

1. Oxygen
2. Water
3. Sleep
4. Nutrition
5. Shelter from the elements, or in general a supportive environment where your body can thrive.

There's one essential function we often take for granted, and that is breathing.

Think about it.

You can go for about three weeks without food. Without shelter, you could still function (depending on the environment). You can go for a day or two without sleep or water.

But you can only survive a minute or two without oxygen. It’s critical for the body’s survival.

Yet, we often unconsciously restrict our breathing.

When we're stressed, our breathing becomes quick and shallow. Our muscles tense, our posture changes, and our bodies can remain on high alert even when we're in no immediate danger.

Without enough oxygen, your higher cognitive functions won’t work properly (such as problem-solving or creative thinking). The body remains in fight-or-flight mode when oxygen is restricted, and the mind will react to this by keeping only the functions necessary for survival online.

Now, of course, the body and mind influence each other constantly, not just under stress.

But stress can change how you breathe, so the way you breathe can also influence how activated or settled you feel.

Breathing won't solve every problem, but it gives you a simple way to pause, reconnect with your body, and support a calmer state.

Factory Reset for the Body: The Breathing Circle

Your breath connects your body and mind. Here's a simple exercise to slow down, reconnect with your body, and practice breathing with your diaphragm.

1. Draw a circle

Draw a circle about 4–5 inches (10–13 cm) across, or simply imagine one. The exact size doesn't matter. Choose a size that lets you breathe slowly and comfortably as you trace its outline with your finger.

2. Follow the circle with your finger

Start at the top and slowly move your finger down one side of the circle. As your finger moves, gently exhale. Let your abdomen relax inward as the air leaves your lungs. By the time your finger reaches the bottom, your lungs should feel comfortably empty, without forcing the last bit of air out.

3. Follow the other half

Continue moving your finger around the circle, this time inhaling slowly through your nose. Let your abdomen expand as your diaphragm does its work. Keep your shoulders relaxed. By the time your finger returns to the top, your lungs should feel comfortably full, without straining to take in more air.

4. Keep the circle moving

As your finger completes each lap, let your breathing flow naturally from exhalation to inhalation and back again. No deliberate pause between the two. Imagine your breath rolling smoothly around the circle.

Continue for a minute or two, keeping the movement and your breathing slow, comfortable, and continuous.

(If you feel dizzy or uncomfortable, return to your normal breathing.)

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2. Mind: Choice

Your mind helps you interpret your experiences, consider possibilities, and most of all, make choices. But when was the last time you gave your mind some real space to think?

We spend hours consuming information, watching videos, scrolling through social media, and absorbing other people's thoughts. There's nothing inherently wrong with any of that. Sometimes we need entertainment, inspiration, or rest.

The problem arises when consumption leaves no room for our own thinking. The mind needs opportunities to question, explore, solve problems, and reach its own conclusions. It needs to consider different perspectives, listen to intuition, recognize emotions, and apply logic.

Think about children. They're constantly asking questions. Why? How? What if?

They explore possibilities before they settle on answers. We could benefit from keeping some of that curiosity alive. You don't have to solve difficult equations or complete a crossword puzzle to exercise your mind.

Sometimes, the most useful question is simply: What do I actually think about this?

Give yourself permission to question what you've been told, examine what you believe, and consider alternatives.

But there’s one “factory reset” the mind needs more than anything: Connection.

Factory Reset for the Mind: Make one genuine connection today

We think of the mind as a “machine” for thinking, analyzing, and solving problems, and it's really good at doing all of that.

But we're social beings, and much of our experience of life revolves around connection.

We want to be understood. We want to share our experiences, exchange ideas, feel that we belong, and know that we're not alone.

Connection doesn't have to mean a deep conversation with another person, either. It can mean being fully present with a friend, playing with a pet, noticing the life around you in nature, or simply looking up from your phone and engaging with the world.

The point is to step out of your own head for a moment and reconnect with life beyond your thoughts.

Reach out to someone you've been meaning to talk to. Ask a friend a question and really listen to the answer. Give your pet your undivided attention. Or take a moment outdoors to notice the trees, birds, and other life around you.

Don't do it to achieve anything. Do it to experience connection.

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3. Spirit: Conception

I use the word spirit to describe the dimension of ourselves connected to deeper awareness, meaning, and the possibility of something beyond what we already know.

You might understand this as the subconscious, inner wisdom, creative intelligence, or something more spiritual. You don't have to agree on the name to explore the idea.

In the framework I use,

the body experiences reality,

the mind considers possibilities and makes choices,

and the spirit conceives what might be possible in the first place.

What the spirit craves most is creation. That’s its very nature. It constantly conceives, constantly creates infinite possibilities. And ultimately, the spirit wishes you to create yourself as itself, i.e., you come to know yourself as the infinite creator.

So the greatest creation project is really you, but anything that gets created through you is the spirit expressing itself.

Creation begins with possibility. Before there's a painting, there's an idea. Before there's a song, there's an impulse to create. Before you change the direction of your life, you must first allow yourself to imagine a different direction.

And creation doesn't have to mean building a business, writing a book, or changing the world. It can be doodling on a piece of paper, making up a melody, dancing in your kitchen, arranging flowers, or stacking stones beside a lake.

The point isn't to produce something impressive. It's to give your creative nature room to express itself. You don't need to monetize it, share it, or turn it into another project for self-improvement.

Create simply because you can.

Factory Reset for the Spirit: Create something, anything.

Spend five minutes drawing, writing, singing, dancing, making music, or experimenting with an idea. Don't worry about whether you're good at it. Don't judge the result. Let yourself explore what emerges.

The goal is expression, not perfection.

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Bringing your system into alignment

The “factory resets” I describe in this newsletter are just that: Resets

They're not literal buttons that instantly restore health and happiness.

They're small practices that help you reconnect with yourself and support your well-being. These aren't cures for every difficulty, and they don't replace the care you may need. But when done consistently, as small daily practices, they can help you make gradual improvements to different dimensions of your well-being.

Here’s the “big idea” behind them: you don't have to treat yourself as a broken machine that needs endless upgrades.

You can begin by understanding how you work, recognizing what you need, and noticing what takes you away from your natural sense of well-being.

The reset button is an entry point, not the whole repair manual

Obviously, there’s so much more to the body, mind, and spirit than I have described here, but as mentioned, these are great entry points for returning to your “factory settings”.

Conclusion: Your three factory resets

Your body, mind, and spirit have different functions, but they're interconnected parts of one whole.

Body: Experience. Your body lets you experience physical reality.

Factory reset: Breathe. Reconnect with your body through slow, deep, cyclical, comfortable breathing.

Mind: Choice. Your mind helps you navigate the world but also find meaning through connection.

Factory reset: Connect. Give someone, an animal, or nature your genuine attention.

Spirit: Conception. Your spirit represents your capacity to imagine possibilities and create something new.

Factory reset: Create. Make something simply for the pleasure of creating.

Think of these as reminders of what helps you thrive, not another list of things you must do perfectly.

Start by understanding your natural needs. You don't have to earn your well-being by constantly improving yourself; you may just need a reset.

Until next time,

Think happy thoughts!

​- Atte

P.S. As I mentioned, these newsletters will continue as usual, but if you'd like more frequent reading, have some questions about what you just read, or just feel like having a chat, come find me on Substack!​

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