Why is our happiness limited?

[ShardMare]

Why does our emotions constantly change?

And our happiness is limited?

Why do we randomly feel more "negative" feelings throughout the day for no reason? ( i mean you could say its because of created negative thoughts by ourselves BUT even if you control your thoughts you are still have a feeling of being pulled back to just feeling normal or feeling a little bit bored)

[Snader]

Obviously we have our biology and brain chemistry. There are also psychological and social factors that interplay with the process. To some degree, you can change how you relate to situations which cause your emotions, and better, you can change how you view your emotions, especially the negative ones. Contemplating the duality of positive and negative emotion helps with that, as you might come to see that there wouldn't be happiness without sadness (considering we are talking about happiness as a positive human emotion).

[Princess Arabia]

There's no "happiness limited". The energy of happiness sadness, joyfulness, anger, envy, jealousy, whatever and the contracted energy of the I latches on to that energy thinking it is it that feels those things and now when happiness in gone you think it left, when sadness arises you think its your sadness, its only energy appearing as sadness and happiness. Drop the I thought and what remains is just sadness and happiness. There is no you. There is just what's appearing, don't hold on to it. It doesn't need a you to appear but the you need it to appear. 

 

Edited April 5 by Princess Arabia

[Carl-Richard]

Reality is change, and thus you suffer.

[Nivsch]

Fundamentaly emotions cannot be grasped but relatively to one another. That is why if you want to feel more happiness you need to embrace more your dark side. Happiness in its root correlated perfectly with your ability to love yourself, but love is being tested when it is difficult.

Edited April 5 by Nivsch

[Yimpa]

2 hours ago, Nivsch said:

if you want to feel more happiness you need to embrace more your dark side

How do you embrace more of your dark side? 

[Hojo]

survival mechanic of the mind. There is a part of your mind that needs to be negative for you to be able to survive. If you went into every situation positively you would be dead.

Edited April 5 by Hojo

[Izzaldin]

Emotions are complex responses to our internal and external environments, influenced by a myriad of factors including our thoughts, experiences, and physiological states. The fluctuation of emotions, including happiness, is part of the human experience, designed to help us navigate the world. 

Firstly, the constant change in our emotions can be attributed to our evolutionary need to respond to varying situations. Emotions like fear or sadness had survival benefits by prompting our ancestors to avoid danger or loss. In modern times, these emotional responses are triggered by both significant and mundane circumstances, contributing to their fluctuating nature.

Regarding the limited nature of happiness, it's important to consider the concept of hedonic adaptation. This psychological phenomenon describes how individuals quickly return to a baseline level of happiness after experiencing positive or negative events. It suggests that sustained happiness is challenging to achieve because we naturally adapt to changes, whether they're improvements or deteriorations in our situation.

The experience of negative feelings throughout the day, sometimes seemingly without cause, can also be examined through the lens of our brain's negativity bias. This bias is the tendency to pay more attention to negative experiences than positive ones. It's thought to have been advantageous for survival but can lead to disproportionate feelings of negativity in daily life. 

Moreover, the expectation to control thoughts and maintain a constant state of positivity is unrealistic. Emotions, including those considered negative, serve important purposes. They can signal needs, motivate change, and facilitate connection with others. The feeling of being pulled back to a state of normalcy or boredom can be viewed as an aspect of hedonic adaptation, reminding us that a static state of high happiness is difficult to maintain indefinitely.

Understanding these dynamics can help in managing expectations about emotional experiences and in seeking balance. Rather than striving for constant happiness, aiming for emotional resilience—the ability to navigate a range of emotional experiences, learning from them, and adapting—may be a more fulfilling approach.

[Nivsch]

14 hours ago, Yimpa said:

How do you embrace more of your dark side? 

I would like to give you an example from what I did and worked for me. Hope today or at most tommorow I will be able to.

[Davino]

Why are there sunny days and rainy days?

[Ishanga]

On 4/5/2024 at 9:36 AM, ShardMare said:

Why does our emotions constantly change?

And our happiness is limited?

Why do we randomly feel more "negative" feelings throughout the day for no reason? ( i mean you could say its because of created negative thoughts by ourselves BUT even if you control your thoughts you are still have a feeling of being pulled back to just feeling normal or feeling a little bit bored)

Emotions constantly change because You are Unaware of what is triggering them, and Emotions trail Thoughts very closely, Emotions and just "Juicy" Thoughts...

Happiness is not Limited, in fact the happier You are the more functional You are, everything about You improves when your happy, Intellect/Intelligence is enhanced, physical attributes are enhanced, focus is better.  Ppl will say we need negative emotions and states to survive, I can see the logic in this, it helps to be angry in a way (this is due to intensity of state/emotion, anger brings You to a very high intense state) when fight/flight kicks in, but in fighting its better to be calm cool and collected than angry you function better, all great fighters are calm when fighting, not angry..Most ppl once again are unhappy because they are Unconscious in nature, of the 4 areas of action within You, Bodily, Mentally, Emotionally, and Energetically, are the 4 areas of action within You, how conscious are you of this every moment of everyday? Probably not very much, so in essence you/most of us are living by accident, by accident we get happy, not on purpose.. This has allot to do with our Free Will!

[Nivsch]

On 6.4.2024 at 1:21 AM, Yimpa said:

How do you embrace more of your dark side? 

Two years ago my anxiety had a big flare up that was constantly accompanied by health anxiety, such as for example - fear that a certain very harsh movement in my body or my head could harm or even kill me (because maybe do something to the brain etc) so what I felt is that I must do the movement, to see that it didn't hurt me, and then I relaxed. There were such unrational anxiety attacks all the time.

But then, one day in the winter of 2022, I was at my Dad's house, and then again such a thought came. But this time, I really gave in to the thought and agreed to accept the position of the thought's content. Ok anxiety. Maybe there is a 1% chance that this bad thing could happen. Then a magic happened and the anxiety just dissolved and was no longer threatening. The sense of danger is gone.

From that moment I began to see the thoughts differently, and to understand that making an alliance with them is the truly right way. I really began to understand that the disturbing thoughts are not against us, they just wear a scary mask, but the solution is actually to unite with them and trust them. Because, a one interpetation I like to take, is that they represent a fear of the inner child who just needs love and a certain approval from us.

And the test is to show the brain (the inner child?) that you are willing to sacrifice something from the ego and precisely give the thought something and throw it a bone. It's like he's testing you, deliberately putting a scary thought on you to test your love for him, and you have to be brave and agree with it a little, and after you've passed the test he basically tells you "I've cheated on you, there's no danger at all".

Becuse what I think happens here is that returning love to yourself is a challenging process, manifests itself as scary masks that translate to you this fact in a very twisted way. You can never think that something your mind is sending you is against you, because than it will become reality. If you try to oppose your brain, it will give you back more scary content because it is you all the time! Acting like a mirror.

The process still isn't thrivial nor linear, and everytime I see I need to do a slightly different action, what makes sense of course, because widening the limits is always like walking to the unknown.

Edited April 7 by Nivsch

[Basman]

The human mind is adapted for survival not happiness. Emotions are fleeting by nature and therefor shouldn't be our sole source of fulfillment.

The solution IMO is to lead your life more for purpose, something grander than yourself, than just happiness. It is why many people have kids. Their children are their purpose.

Edited April 7 by Basman

[Ishanga]

47 minutes ago, Basman said:

The human mind is adapted for survival not happiness. Emotions are fleeting by nature and therefor shouldn't be our sole source of fulfillment.

The solution IMO is to lead your life more for purpose, something grander than yourself, than just happiness. It is why many people have kids. Their children are their purpose.

Many ppl sort of put down happiness, but happiness/Joy is just the fundamental Quality of Your Life! Why do ppl do anything in their Lives? Why does one have Kids? Its because they want to be happy and they see having kids, or a career, or going to school or making allot of money as the path to happiness. 

Do You eat food you dislike? No because it makes You unhappy, working jobs no one likes makes ppl unhappy. What we have to realize is that ppl are capable of Suffering anything and everything, they can suffer being Alone or with a group of ppl or married, they can Suffer being Poor or Rich, Educated or Uneducated, Parents or Non Parents, so its never the activity that provides Happiness, Happiness is a choice to be Willing, if Your Willingness is present then your much more Happy than being a Unwilling participant in any activity!

 

 

Edited April 7 by Ishanga

[Breakingthewall]

Any unhappiness is a sign of something that you must change . We are malleable structures, and our will is the will of existence. The flow of life dictates the narrow path, the evolutionary movement that you must make, the metamorphosis that you must complete in this life. you must be absolutely one with the experience, breaking the separation and opening yourself to the vital flow. Spiritual work is not understanding things but opening yourself to this reality and being one with it. understanding is a tool for this, not the ultimate goal .

[Inception]

Survival, i.e. desire for a specific outcome (outcome dependence). If you're only happy under (very) specific conditions, you can't by definition be happy all the time (under all conditions).