AIBU to ask what those of you who are happy with your lives do?

[Elle7rose]

Just that really...

• What job do you have?
• Do you have a partner/DH/kids?
• Are you financially very well off?
• Are you in good health?

• Or is it just an attitude?

It's an attitude, for sure. I am extremely happy. I am also poor as fuck, in loads of debt, don't earn much, my DH is disabled, we live in a rented house, our blended family is stressful, I have no family left, zero social life... But I am always happy, grateful, zen. Maybe it's because our relationship is amazing, I feel like I can get through anything.

I think the secret to happiness is to be content and appreciate what you have. Always chasing more means you are never happy with what you have and comparison is the thief of joy.

Having said that I wouldn't cope well with a full time, stressful job. Lack of down time certainly impacts on me so I have been lucky enough to engineer my life around a part time, easy job that really does not utilise my qualifications. But I'm happy and Dp earns enough to ensure that we don't have money worries. Kids are great too.

Job- work for energy company in a metering capacity. I like it.

Do you have a partner/DH/kids - yes wife and one DD 9 months old

Financially- we have around 700 pounds after all bills and food to spend so I think we are. Not rich obviously but we can save a bit and treat ourselves and baby😀

Health - ok now, has MH problems on off for few years but managed well now.

My advice is Don’t make happiness your goal, make living a worthwhile life your goal. Be proud of yourself for everything you do well when you Could have messed it up or even worse not bothered at all. The things that make me happy are family, friends, reading poetry and gardening.

If you can step away from the attitude of always wanting more stuff or more money or more space or more time or more money and just be here and now, you can get a glimpse of what true happiness is.

It's an attitude.

Job - office administrator in a small company.
Partner - no, single and happily so. One 6yo DS.

Financially, I am a low earner but I am comfortable due to very low outgoings. I don't worry about paying the bills and can afford a couple of holidays a year and days out with DS when I want.

Health - great, I'm a couple of stone overweight but nothing that can't be solved, and very lucky that I've never suffered with anything MH related.

I think I started becoming happier when I stopped living my life for other people and started living it for myself.

I'm a chartered accountant.
DH, DS, DD & the kitty cat
Yes financially well off
Yes in good health (now)

Right now am the happiest I have ever been, probably due to a healthy dose of perspective.

After DS we planned a second child thinking it would be easy. Then had 3 miscarriages. Then a v complicated preg & prem DD, who was then critically ill twice in her 5 months of life.

Now we are all here. All home. All well. That in itself is perfect.

But I won't be a knob and deny that it helps that DH and I both have good careers, we are naturally careful with money so save well & thus afford a good standard of living and are very financially secure.

I’m generally pretty happy with life, there’s some stuff that’s less than ideal, but generally we are pretty happy. I work in a brilliant, supportive team and now have a great boss who trusts me to do a good job and is very supportive.

I think that a big contributing factor our happiness this is that my husband works from home full time in a fairly flexible role, which helps to balance out my not flexible job and shitty commute.

I’ve had some very unhappy times which have led to this point, so it hasn’t always been a bed of roses, but I feel like now we have a good balance and a nice standard of living.

I work three days a week as a teacher and I have DH and a one year old. We are very comfortable, but only due to the loss of my grandparents and one of my parents, which I do tend to point out when anyone says how lucky we are to be mortgage free in a nice area. I would give it all up and go back to living in the rough area we lived in before to have my dad back.

Generally in good health although myself and DD seem to have been constantly ill since November with colds/flu/tummy bugs.

I work for the NHS in a clinical practitioner role (mainly based in a&e). I used to enjoy it but after 13 years I'm a bit tired.

I have been married for 6 years. One DD who is a year old. Plus a few ex battery chickens.

We earn a reasonable amount however we have a lot of debts as well as a mortgage. DD took 30k worth of Ivf to conceive and it will take a few years to pay that off especially now we are paying for childcare as well.
We do have several short UK holidays a year but this is due to my parents timeshare. We would not be able to afford holidays if we had to pay fully for them.

We are in good health and try and be as active as possible. We live in the country side so we go on lots of walks/picnics.

Am I happy? ..... I am most of the time I think. I have moments when I dwell on thoughts of never being able to have a second child or that most of my pay each month goes on credit card bills but overall I am very grateful for my dd and for my very supportive husband. I am grateful for the occasional help from my parents and in laws.

This country is going to shit. Only the rich will be happy.

Married, healthy, good income between us now we’re in our 50s. Work in an unimportant but creative job. The only (!) downers are kids leaving home and parents getting older/more ill. (Oh, and peri menopausal libido drop...)