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Your brain’s default mode is unfavorable, catastrophic thinking.

Negative self-talk only serves to feed misery, and striving for perfection can intensify unhappiness.

Self-acceptance can help bolster contentment and add joy.

Just about everyone experiences misery from time to time, and for some it is a constant—or all-too-frequent—companion. I certainly sometimes feel like I am spiraling or overwhelmed by negative thoughts.

We have our reasons for feeling this way, of course. There is much to be sad, worried, or anxious about in our world, be it political chaos or personal disappointment. For parents, we might worry and experience unhappiness when our child struggles at school, doesn’t make a sports team, or isn't accepted to a preferred college.

The sources of misery are as diverse as the lives we lead. When in-laws try to dictate our family life, a friend ghosts us, or a boss increases our workload, it can affect our outlook or mindset for the worse. You may ruminate over the details, trying to parse out what you could have done or what someone else did to put you in your current state of mind.

“Some people are just not good at being happy,” writes two-time Pulitzer Prize finalist Percival Everett in his........

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