To ask can money make you happy?

[Needinghelp1]

I'm feeling a bit at the moment.

Can it make you happy, do you think?

Not having to worry about mortgage payments, paying bills and being able to go away for a weekend/ out for a day trip without too much thought has massively improved my happiness! I was happy before though, so it's just pushed it further up.

I don't think money makes people actively happy, except through experiences it can provide. I think it can certainly make life less stressful in many ways, by paying for creature comforts. I am horrified by some of the threads on here where people can't afford to run their heating in winter and sit in freezing cold houses

I also think money can help alleviate illness, preventatively and if you are already ill - so if you need urgent treatment and can afford private medical care, you can 'skip' the queue. This is also true for mental health - the waiting times here for talking therapies are ridiculous and probably life-threatening.

Money does not make you happier, it just exposes you to people with more money than you and then you feel like you don't have enough. It cannot bring contentment or love into your life.

I kind of agree with a PP who pointed out how much help you could give to others if you were rich. I know there's a finite amount of money that would really bring improvements to my own life-- but if I had the means to make "magic" happen for others, I think it would really lift me up. In kind of the same way that it makes me happy to make soup for a sick friend or offer emergency childcare now, having more money would give me the means to help more people in more ways. I'd love to be a secret millionaire and spend my time making lots of others that little bit happier.

I don't think never having to work again would equal happiness. I know people who don't have to work (rich families give then am allowance) and they are among the most mixed up, disappointed people I know. Many people get a strong sense of purpose and satisfaction from working. It would just be nice if it also pays well!

I notice friends with money have a more carefree way to them, their lives aren't perfect by any means, but they aren't worn down by money struggles like I am.

runningupthehill82, can I ask how old your kids are?

Obviously there is a bottom limit (i.e. if you are starving, if you have no roof). But once you get beyond the necessities of life I think how "rich" you feel or how "financially secure" you feel largely depends on your psychological make up.

I have friends who have all the financial security in the world but they are probably the most anxious about money and "what if x loses his job". It is almost compulsive and really it is about something else.

I have other friends who live a much more precarious existence and who are far more carefree. Their philosophy is that they won't starve in this country and how bad could it be? Their children will be educated, they have books and music, and that the real thing to worry about is health, not money.

All those who think an extra million would solve all their worries might well find, if it ever came about, that it had no effect at all on their feelings of security or otherwise. You think it would, but I doubt it. Feeling secure is a psychological phenomenon largely, as is the feeling of "having enough".

It won't guarantee it, but it certainly can make you happy. It depends on how you use it.

Posted too soon.

Even having it in the bank would count as using it, and would probably be very effective at making you happy, as you would be spared any money worries but not have the pressure of keeping up with other, even richer people.

I've gone from very poor (single parent on benefits) to very comfortable (six figure income) and life has definitely been better with money. I don't feel I need millions at all, and I don't care much for material things, but being able to afford good housing and not having to say no to anything for financial reasons gives me a sense of freedom.

It is not just about security - my previous council tenancy was secure, and my benefits were never at risk of sanctions or being cut. But I would get stressed at losing any money, or having to pay more than I could have, and always had to choose the cheapest option which was often harder work or more stressful (e.g. several long bus journeys instead of a taxi). And I'm able to enjoy more leisure activities without worrying about the cost, which definitely makes me happier. I often choose to go to free events but I also don't have to think twice about the cost of going to a play or concert that I really want to see.

I would say the figures in those studies mentioned above wouldn't apply to London though, as it's hard to save a decent deposit here on £50k. We have not fallen into the trap of upgrading our lifestyle as our income has grown (we have a modest home, small family and no car) and I think that has helped us feel the benefits of the higher income and not just keeping up with peers.