Amplify Your Joy: Master the Art of Savouring

Author

Josh Dickson
March 19, 2024

Savouring is how we turn up the volume on life’s best moments. It’s a skill that Barbara Frederickson, a leading expert in positive psychology, has shown to have profound impacts on well-being and happiness.

Here are some of them:

Savouring can supercharge our positive emotions, making them last longer and feel stronger. This boosts our resilience, our emotional health, our ability to overcome negativity, and our range of options.

Savouring can build our personal resources, such as physical, mental, and social abilities, that we can use in future situations to handle stress and adversity.

Savouring can strengthen our social bonds, by sharing our joy with others, expressing our gratitude, and celebrating our successes. Savouring can improve our self-esteem, by acknowledging our achievements, our strengths, and our values.

Savouring can promote our mindfulness, by focusing on the present moment and being aware of our sensations, our feelings, and our thoughts.

Savouring a positive memory is a technique that can amplify your current happiness and build emotional resilience for the future. According to Barbara Fredrickson’s Broaden-and-Build Theory, positive emotions expand our awareness and encourage novel, varied, and exploratory thoughts and actions1 . When you recall a joyful memory, immerse yourself in the experience as if reliving it. Pay attention to the sensory details—the sights, sounds, smells, and emotions you felt at the moment. Allow yourself to be fully present in the memory, appreciating the positive feelings it evokes.

To deepen the experience of savouring, share the memory with someone else. This not only reinforces the memory but also strengthens social connections, which are vital personal resources. Reflect on what this memory says about you and your values, and let it reinforce your sense of self and your ability to experience joy. By regularly practicing savouring, you can increase your daily dose of positive emotions, contributing to greater overall well-being and life satisfaction1 .

Savouring also aligns perfectly with the Resurface programme, which offers surf therapy to people who have experienced any form of trauma.

Surfing is a powerful way to savour life, as it involves being immersed in nature, feeling the thrill of riding waves, and achieving a state of flow. Surfing can also help people heal from trauma, as it can reduce stress, increase self-efficacy, and foster social support.

By combining surfing with group therapy, psycho-education, mindfulness, and bonding, the Resurface programme helps people create and regenerate psychological tools and resources to cope with their trauma and improve their well-being.

Are you ready to heal your trauma and improve your well-being through the power and magic of surfing? If so, you won’t want to miss our next Resurface retreat, where you will get to experience all the benefits of our evidence-based surf therapy programme. You will get to:

  • Surf in some of the most beautiful and exotic locations in the world, with expert guidance and support from our staff.

  • Learn from our experienced therapists, who will help you understand your trauma, cope with your emotions, and build your resilience.

  • Practice mindfulness, yoga, and deep relaxation, to calm your mind, body, and spirit.

  • Connect with a supportive community of people who share your journey and your goals.

  • Have fun, laugh, and enjoy life again.

Our retreats are open to anyone who has experienced any form of trauma, whether it is recent or old, personal or collective, simple or complex. We have different levels of surfing available, from beginner to intermediate, and we cater to your individual needs and preferences. We also have different themes and locations for our retreats, such as:

You can find out more about our retreats and book your spot on our website. But hurry, spaces are limited and filling up fast! Don’t miss this opportunity to heal your trauma and improve your well-being through the power and magic of surfing. Join us and Resurface your life today