How nostalgia can increase happiness during a pandemic

to feel Nostalgia – or reminiscing about missed experiences – It can have real positive effects, including Dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic, to me study It was made by researchers from the universities of Southampton, England, and Zhejiang, China.

Through a questionnaire, 3,700 participants from the US, UK and China described their levels of loneliness, nostalgia, and happiness on a scale from 1 (“impossible”) to 7 (“very much”). Data were collected during the early days of the pandemic, with the onset of social isolation.

In the analysis, the researchers found that in the three countries, volunteers with a relatively high rate of loneliness had lower average happiness scores.

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However, what caught our attention is that The loneliness also led to nostalgic memories. Which in turn led to increased feelings of happiness and counteracting the negative impact of loneliness.

Sowing nostalgia leads to happiness

To complement the survey results, the researchers tested the idea in three other trials, with about 200 people in each. The volunteers were divided into two groups:

• In one of them, the participants had to write four words about a nostalgic event. Then, for three minutes, they freely described how these experiences made them feel.
• The other group, which served as a control and comparison, received the same task, but without any indication that the memories cause nostalgia.

The results showed that, compared to the control group, the nostalgic participants had higher levels of happiness – equal to the data obtained in the initial phase of the research.

However, after the original experiment, volunteers in the nostalgia group were prompted to think again about their memories, and this “reinforcer”, again, led to higher degrees of feelings.

“a Nostalgia increases happiness Immediately after handling, and with a booster, two days later. It is a psychological resource that can be used to increase happiness and help fight loneliness.” published article Not about social psychology and personality science.

Mental health benefits

Although it’s not the first study on the topic, the discoveries are bringing implications primarily to the field of mental health, according to Melina Fernandez-Mata, a neuropsychologist at Vibe Saúde, who is a graduate of… Institute of Psychiatry, Hospital das Clinicas, University of the South Pacific.

Nostalgia appears as an equalizing and protective element, as it stimulates an increase in happiness and its continuation for up to 48 hours. In doing so, they indicate the importance of knowledge and discussions of such findings,” he explains.

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For Mata, nurturing moments of nostalgia is a way to keep our history and existence alive, especially in the event of a pandemic, which has imposed a vast social barrier. “We started to fill in the gaps with previous experiences of emotion, trying to deal with or support this deficiency,” says the neuropsychologist.

Can nostalgia be bad?

Although it is not the most common to experience Feelings of nostalgia can also be harmful in some cases.. This mainly happens in the face of insurmountable idealism.

The feeling can limit pleasure in current relationships and experiences, and memories are perceived as pain and discomfort. In the long run, it can cause harm, including to mental health.

When this occurs, it is essential to seek help from a trained professional who can indicate psychotherapy sessions, medications, or other activities that aid in the process.

* This text was originally published by the Einstein Agency.