NYT: Happiness Doesn’t Bring Good Health, Study Finds

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/10/health/happiness-health-study.html?ref=health&_r=0

Hahahahahahahah!

 

Those who are commenting seem to be having a hard time having their illness beliefs challenged.

 

Haha, well I always said a long life is punishment for miserable sods.

 

Great news.....

 

Despite its lack of health benefits, I still like being happy.

 

True. But at least you don't have to worry about any negative health effects in addition to feeling miserable if that's the case.

 

And your avatar shows it!

I've found that deliberately choosing hope in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds is much better for me than trying to be mindlessly happy. I always have the power to choose hope without faking it even when my biochemistry doesn't really support me feeling cheerful or even optimistic. With hope, I can still indulge in being situationally grumpy or morose without the bad feelings completely taking over my life. They pass, and what remains is just pure not giving up, even if it ain't particularly happy.

 

Does happiness itself directly affect mortality? The prospective UK Million Women Study - The Lancet

Who'd have thought it?

Actually, even those very keen on biopychocial theories had had to abandon such views quite a long time ago, due to excessive evidence it was simply wrong. As someone pointed out here.

Great. And now I can enjoy being grumpy even more.

 

Amen to that

 

Quite liberating isn't it?

 

Happiness and positivity are not magic. They do not bring magical results. However if you were to investigate quality of life you might find the happier people had a higher quality of life experience. It does have an impact, its just not the stuff that some are hyped about. Being happy is something most of us wish for. Its a motivator. Its good. Its just not magic.

 

Happiness is irrelevant. It's all I can do to get through another day. That doesn't mean every moment of every day is agony and misery - far from it. It just means there is nothing left over for "Happiness".

I believe the situation is similar for millions of working stiffs. After working two or three part time jobs and dealing with the endless administrative b.s. that dominates so much of "modern" life, many folks simply have nothing left over for their family, never mind chasing after some illusory "Happiness" state. To me it's another way for people to feel inadequate and blame themselves for whatever situation they are in.

 

"Study finds that happiness doesn't cure illnesses". - But one thing is for sure:

"Study finds that being cured from a lifelong illness brings happiness"!

(the study of my dreams)

 

What!? Psychology studies confusing cause and effect? Say it isn't so! The next thing is that we'll find they continually confuse correlation and causation.


Sure is a lot of confusion about basic science going on in psychological research, isn't there?

 

You don't say?

 

This study challenges everything I ever learned from my lucky astrology mood watch!

 

Bad news for the "Smile or Die" crowd.

(phrase is from a book title, see http://www.theguardian.com/books/2010/jan/09/barbara-ehrenreich-smile-lucy-ellmann )