We live in very uncertain times, The news is full of doom and gloom, and the cost of living crisis is very real! So it's understandable that stress and anxiety levels are high among us all.

What if I told you that you could become happier, less stressed and anxious without spending money or changing anything aside from doing short, simple activities to increase well-being?

The PERMA+ model by positive psychologist Martin Seligman is an evidence-based approach to improving happiness and decreasing anxiety and stress. 

The PERMA model outlines the characteristics of a flourishing individual. It comprises five components that enable flourishing - Positive emotion, Engagement, Relationships, Meaning and Accomplishment and there are simple techniques and activities to increase each.

We are all different, and positive psychology recognises that different people will derive wellbeing from each building block to varying degrees. Essentially, the PERMA model will enable flourishing by helping people make more informed choices, so they can pursue the intrinsically motivating things aligned with their values and interests to live a more fulfilling life. 

Research has shown significant positive associations between the PERMA components and physical health, vitality, job satisfaction, life satisfaction, and commitments within organisations (Kern, Waters, Alder, & White, 2014)

Interior Design and Positive Psychology

Whilst PERMA has positively influenced my personal life, it gets exciting and juicy when you apply the principles to interior design. It may not seem immediately apparent how or why this is relevant but dig a little deeper. You'll see how wellness interior design can better support the five PERMA components and be used to create homes and workplaces that allow people to be physically and mentally healthy and provide opportunities to restore, uplift the spirit and make people happy.

This influential theory of happiness goes a long way to help understand this subject. Happiness goes beyond just these five components, and the + can include other areas, such as optimism, physical activity, sleep and many others.

Four other independent approaches that have many similar aspects but also build upon them with design in mind are:

•  Diener's model for Subjective wellbeing, 
• Dolan's checklist in his book Happiness by Design, 2014
• Bernheimer's BALANCED checklist in her book The Shaping of Us, 2017
• WELL Building Standard version2 rating system

These all form the foundational principles behind my approach to interior design that makes my offer unique, and the best bit is it is evidence-based, so you can be safe in the knowledge that it works!

If you would like to understand how wellness interior design can better support your happiness in the home or workplace, read more here, or feel free to contact me.

#positivepsychology #permamodel #wellnessinteriordesign #healthyhome #homerenovation #wellnessinteriordesign #interiordesign #flourish #healthyworkplace #martineseligman #WeAreWell #WellAP #Wellbuildingstandard #subjectivewellbeing #happinessbydesign