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When I came to Wyoming back in 2007, I new this beautiful state full of friendly down to earth people was someplace I wanted to hang my hat for a good many years.  And I'm not alone in feeling this way about our great state, as a new study was just release and it shows that Wyoming is one of the happiest states in the USA.

When you think of states that make you happy, of course you'll think Hawaii for its sandy serenity, or you might think of Colorado for its Rocky Mountain highs, if you did you're close. Both consistently hit the annual top 10 list of happiest states. But the state where residents feel most content is: Alaska.

On the bottom end of the scale, the least happy states can be found in the south and along the east coast. Of note, last year's most happy state - North Dakota, tumbled to #23 this year due in part to its residents' overall life evaluation, coupled with worsened health related behaviors (such as higher smoking rates), reduced exercise and less healthy eating habits compared to 2013.

Wyoming lands in the top 5 this year, falling between South Dakota and Montana.

Here are the top 10 and bottom 10 happiest states in the US.

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The Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index score for the nation and for each state consists of factors affecting the overall well-being and studies each of the five essential elements of well-being:

Purpose: liking what you do each day and being motivated to achieve your goals
Social: having supportive relationships and love in your life
Financial: managing your economic life to reduce stress and increase security
Community: liking where you live, feeling safe, and having pride in your community
Physical: having good health and enough energy to get things done daily

Gallup and Healthways have been tracking our nations well-being since 2008 and updated the Well-Being Index in 2014 to provide a more comprehensive measure of well-being.

 

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