'Hedonic adaptation is the tendency for humans to quickly adapt to major positive or negative life events or changes and return to their base level of happiness'
There you have it, it's science! When humans go through a significant life change, the emotions this brings are temporary. Even if you achieved a major goal, the satisfaction will only last a short time before your brain re-adapts to its new situation and starts asking for more!
In the same way, if you've lost a fortune and have to go back to being poor and working long hours, instead of becoming depressed, you get used to it. The sadness this event bring only lasts a short time, then you've adapted to this new life.
What does this mean? Well, if we thought reaching a 'destination' will bring us happiness, we're wrong! Turns out our brains will adapt to the new situation really quickly and return to its happiness set point. Then we start looking for the next journey, the next goal, without actually being content. So the road we think we're travelling on never really ends.
A happiness set point is where humans generally maintain a constant level of happiness throughout their lives, despite events that occur in their environment.
We get most of our happiness set point genetically and from our early childhoods, but by increasing our awarness of ourselves and our reality, we can help raise it.
The crucial problem that gets in the way is comparison. We lose touch with our reality when we focus on others instead. You might be happy with your 75k salary until you make a new friend who makes 500k, then your perception switches completely.
When we stop comparing, we might realize that our wage is enough for us at the moment. If we focus on our life as it is, as well as on our dreams, we might find a lot of things we are grateful for right now. By getting to know ourselves better we can set achievable goals and gradually increase our happiness base-line. It's really important to spend more time being in 'the now' and aware of the good things in our life as it is.
Thank you for reading and I hope you found this post useful.
Until next time, Steem on!
Corina
The emotions of human being is quite volatile with distinct frequency, especially when our goals met, but not all people never satisfied, many people settle less and that's what they get. But to those achievers and successful will never be satisfied because they gets bored easily, they need more challenging task it's quite exhausting to think about it, but it is more exhausting to just sit and relax, even if we are resting we can't rest forever because of the boredom, Boredom is indeed a great motivator to do something that accomplishes task.
This is the human nature of selfish sinning with his own hands and then blames his life, we must learn gratitude
Be yourself Be good
Thanks for sharing
Great post from you
This is human nature with never ending demand. Today I have good house to live, next day need a car, then social status. People find hapiness within it. If you want to be happy, do not require to find, it will automatically come. Thanks for sharing such nice thoughts.
Thank you for the very sobering post. I couldn't agree more that our happiness is constantly being reset. I've come to realize, as you've said, to not envy and compare yourself to others. That is the source of unhappiness. I think the source of continual happiness is love for friends, your spouse, and your family. Every other form of happiness is just temporary pleasure. Thanks for the grounding perspective.
Thank you for your comment. You are right, I also think loving and caring for others is the greatest source of joy in life.
By conscious breathing you can learn how to get control over your hormonal system and release happy hormones on will.
There is no such thing as an autonomous nervous system. Our cortex (thinking brain) can influence all systems in our body. Including the "autonomous" system which release hormones. Happy, sad, DMT, adrenaline. You name it.
Wim Hof is teaching you how to do this. You can start by watching this documentary:
yes this is true. but why exclude comfort zones? youve adapted but remain happy and it doesnt fade?
Why be satisfied when you can switch to Geico and get more? Lol!
Don't get me wrong. I know that I joked about it. But, being satisfied is good and healthy. However, when it's time for change or upgrade, then make the change.
nice post
Great topic
thanks for the great writing and for warning people.
Satisfaction can be viewed from different angles. Satisfaction brings about complacency when you are below what you ought to be. Not being satisfied brings about greatness with perils
"The crucial problem that gets in the way is comparison. We lose touch with our reality when we focus on others instead."
Easier said than done unfortunately.
i was thinking yesterday no matter what we 'have', our desire is always slightly larger ... it's part of the thrive to survive, sometimes unfortunately
great article
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Thanks for the Awesome post. It makes a lot of sense. Well I also think the struggle of life continues forever. It’s one of the laws of the Universe. Everything vibrates, nothing rests. We must keep moving, movement don’t stop no matter the circumstance. A man must keep moving forward and when he stops moving forward he starts moving backward. In true reality there’s no such thing as being stagnant, when one thinks he is stucked or stagnant he actually is moving backward. Relating this to life and human satisfaction; I don’t think we can actually ever be truly satisfied. We must keep focusing on our self development throughout the journey of life.
That sounds very interesting. Thank you for your comment.
Thanks and You’re welcome
A great article, and very well written.
Good luck on
hiii @corina, really well written and useful article you shared.
Very well written and insightful article. First upvote of the day!
Nice@corina
You should only compare with the person you were yesterday.
Very true! It's an interesting phenomenon indeed and just goes to show happiness is a choice, not a destination.
Hello friend, happiness is really temporary, it lasts little and you have to take advantage of it. Every day is a starting point for our life and happiness, I think part of human nature. thanks for your post
Great information. We have to adapt to keep life going, there is a lot to talk about this. This is why we are all running all the time instead of stoping and enjoy what we have already achieve. Thank you for your post!
there is something to think about
As far as I know the master key for real happiness in life , is this well said statement : Live the moment!!
That's very true! Thanks for reading.
Some are not really satisfied, with what they have to find themselves immersed in inner deficiencies, you will never feel fulfilled until you find God and make him part of your life.
Only God is enough, seek your help, let yourself be guided by Him and walk holding on to His hand.
Let's worry less about material and superficial things, let's look for more spiritual things.
Blessings for all.
If I look above there are so many above me and when I look down there are many below me, so I've learned to be happy with who & what I am now. This keeps me happy & humble.
It's so true on how quickly we adapt, and how quickly something becomes old news. Novelty seeking has us addicted to goals, lifestyle, gadgets etc etc etc. Never truly appreciating what we have in this moment now.
I love how simple and accessible you made this post. Nicely written.
Gratitude is the best attitude.
Gratitude is so important! Just being aware of the good things in our life can make us much happier. Thanks for dropping by!
Resilience is the ability of people to overcome unsettling situations in life. We have the courage to face any type of situation, but we lock ourselves in our problems without looking for easy, fast and simple solutions; There lies the social problem of the human being. We must worry but also take care, always looking for happiness in small details, insignificant things. We come to be happy without so much story.
good and interesting have a nice day
I don't know how I get to read your post but I'm happy I did it. I "feel" everything that you wrote, in subconscious I know all this but coming from somebody else make you're eyes open a little bit more :) You did a great job! Upvote!
Humans are never satisfied because we are not content the more we get the more they want.
The concept of being little bit unhappy with our lives is or always wanting more it has to be with growing. The universe is always growing, expanding so are we as a individuals or as community. Coz the moment we stop growing we'll start die.
Why are humans never satisfied?... I know why and I have answered your question. Here it is... https://steemit.com/life/@domeniq-x/why-are-humans-never-truly-satisfied-here-s-why
excellent post
I do not understand the question.
So happiness is compliancy? Should be and end, but it is actually a never-ending road.
Interesting, I've not heard that term before. It appears its a theory based on observation. I imagine the set point can be positively influenced through things such as mediation and diet. I definitely like the idea of being able to set my standard of "happy" to something quite comfortable.
Because we are always looking for what to do with our lives. We always do only personal and short term goals and thus when they are met we then are fulfilled. Then the feeling of being lost comes back again.
The solution I found is to do things for the greater good of everyone and usually that comes as long term goals. If one has that then it will take longer for us to feel lost once we have reached and fulfilled a not so personal dream/goal. 👍
You write very good posts. I like 'em.
Thank you! I agree with you. Focusing on others and the good of the community can help.
This post really touches me! :-) :-)
Human beings are contradictory. We are nomadic and sedentary. And we accumulate things that we later throw away. And happiness is not a goal, it's a by-product of a well-lived life. It enjoys the satisfaction of doing small things well.
Excellent advice and nicely written post! Thank you for sharing this with #steemitbloggers 😊
Ah, the destination disease - the thinking that when we get to our destination, we will be happy. What you said is true, because happiness is hardly determined with factors from outside, but from within. Sure, you can create environmental factors to boost your happiness - shopping is one :) - but in a long term, we all know it's u healthy.