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Original poster

Who here is truly content?

35 replies

Jahan · 13/09/2006 16:06

How do you define your contentment?
What makes you content and how can others achieve it?
Rather philosophical but I have a friend who keeps asking me this and I never know how to answer her so I thought I'd ask you lot and hopefully someone will be able to help.

OP posts:
expatinscotland · 13/09/2006 16:08

I'm not.

But such is life.

I've stopped dwelling on it and started taking steps to improve things, but I doubt I'll ever be truly content.

Such is the human condition for some.

Hope my daughters are luckier than I am.

noddyholder · 13/09/2006 16:09

I practice reiki which i think has helped me.I am totally content in my relationship and home life.I have learned to accept certain things and not to try and change others it is impossible.I try and concentrate on what I have rather than what i haven't and I try to live in the day as much as poss.The hardest thing is not judging others as we are more or less programmed to but I must admit when I manage it my life is better

Mascaraohara · 13/09/2006 16:09

In answer to the thread question HELL NO but then I have decided that I will never be happy with what I have, I'm just that kind of person.

Tinker · 13/09/2006 16:11

Me, I think. But I have low (realistic?) expectations. The things that currently make me discontent will soon change (Realise I have just contradicted my first statement but ykwim)

hulababy · 13/09/2006 16:12

I feel pretty content. My relationship with Dh is great - we love one another and enjoy each other's company. We have a lovely DD, who is a happy healthy child. We have a nice house which we really like living in. Finacially we are good too. We have good relationships with both of our families, and have some great friends. We have a great lifestyle. There are some things I have had learnt to accept and they cause me no pain or anything to consider now.

So yes, I think I am content.

peanutbutter · 13/09/2006 16:13

i think i'm content. my life, like everyone's, is full of ups and downs. this weekend i cried because i feel so lonely atm , but, all in all, i'm content with my life. Not sure why.. we've not much money, dh's job situation has been shit to say the least, beloved mil died last year, rows with family, blah blah....i do literally count my blessings though and when good things happen i really view them as wonderful blessings (don't mean in any religious sense either).

Maybe i'm just a bit simple

Twiglett · 13/09/2006 16:13

Me .. I'm content

generally content

no great highs, no great lows

What makes me content .. I am happy with what i have acheived in life, I am happy with what I'm doing now and where I am ... sometimes I get a bit down but no biggie. We had a few difficult years when DH first got his dx (he has a pernicious form of arthritis) but everything's smoothed out .. I think that made us grateful for what we've got now

HOw can others achieve it .... realise that it doesn't matter what others want / aspire to .. it matters what you have .. look around you and see how much you have .. be grateful you haven't lost it .. realise that after every bad patch it gets better .. that when you fuck up really badly people forget over time and everything normalises

when something really upsets you analyse it .. what is makign you upset .. work out how you might feel in a week .. will your upset have faded, work out how you might feel if one component of what has upset you changes .. try to change it

JessaJam · 13/09/2006 16:20

I was SO content before ds was born. Happy with my life. Happy with dh, where we lived, how we lived, jobs etc. DS came along and the world was thrown into a spin...wasn't 'happy' for quite a few months afterwards (don't think it went as far as PND, just 'low mood') feel now that I am coming out of that (a year on) and working on settling into a new form of contentedness...

Twiglett · 13/09/2006 16:21

I find other people amusing .. I think that helps too

Original poster
Jahan · 13/09/2006 16:27

Thanks.
I think my friend is like Mascaraohara but she really wants to be happy.
She has no reason to be unhappy but wants to change her mentality.
I think it really is about counting blessings.

OP posts:
FioFio · 13/09/2006 16:41

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn

coderoo · 13/09/2006 16:41

me

notasheep · 13/09/2006 16:44

I am content as i have all 5 senses,4 limbs and can lead an independant life

brimfull · 13/09/2006 16:45

I am very content

fullmoonfiend · 13/09/2006 16:46

jahan I have always said that - about counting blessings. Recently there was a report on what makes people happy and I was happy (!) to seee that point came up loud and clear as a useful happiness tool

To me, happiness is about appreciating the delicious little pockets between life's great highs and lows and conciously thinking ''This makes me happy. I am content. Right here. Right now.'' Not thinking about the past or the future.

Hug your children. Bake bread. Smell the flowers. Look at the sunset. That is as much 'living' as adreanaline highs IMO.

Clayhead · 13/09/2006 16:46

I'm content but not sure how to define it!

Love dh, dd, ds, feel appreciated.

nutcracker · 13/09/2006 16:47

I have to be about as far from contented as you can get LOL.

expatinscotland · 13/09/2006 16:47

My mother is so content, sometimes I want to slap her.

JoolsToo · 13/09/2006 16:49

Twiglett - what a great post!

I'm happy with my lot too.

iota · 13/09/2006 16:49

my life is pretty good - but in an ideal world I would be 2 stone lighter, dh wouldn't be away so much and my elder son would be as easy to feed as his little brother.

but overall, I have a nice life

sweetheart · 13/09/2006 16:52

I wasn't content. Dh and I weren't getting along too well, stress of trying for a baby for ages. I wasn't happy with work.

Then I fell pregnant and 4 months in we lost our little boy. It was the most devastating thing that has ever happened to me but looking back it has fixed alot of things.

I'm genrally a happy person anyway so after a few weeks of constant crying I told myself it was time to get on with life.

Dh and I have never been closer, our family has been blessed with ds and he has a big sister that loves him to death. I work part time now to pay the bills so I couldn't give a stuff about work. We lead a comfy life financially and we have the best family and friends ever.

I love my family and although I'd like to achieve other stuff in the future right this second....

I'm content!

Mascaraohara · 13/09/2006 16:54

Jahan, don't get me wrong - I'm not sad about the fact.. I just recognise that whatever I have in life, I'll always be able to find something that's not quite right or there's something I want more.. the grass in always greener etc.. could earn more money, could spend more t ime with dd, could have a bigger house, my hair could be darker, thicker, dp could do more etc but at the end of the day I know what I've got ain't 'alf bad.. I just know that I will never have that content feeling that some achieve...

I wish I did have time to smell the flowers, bake bread etc but I doubt very much I'll have that either.. maybe one day, I'll be in a position to bake

ProfYaffle · 13/09/2006 16:55

I am. Have a great dh, loving being a SAHM (much to my surprise, had very low expectations of motherhood), secure financially. I totally agree about counting blessings and living in the moment.

ProfYaffle · 13/09/2006 16:56

Actually, iota has a point, 2 stone lighter would be nice!

Kidstrack · 13/09/2006 17:00

I would say i'm very content with what dp and i have, we are both young (24) have two lovely kids, a nice rented house, a good relationship (make time for each other etc). Dp works hard at his job, i have been home for neraly 7yrs looking after the kids and have recently started work. Next step is to buy a place of our own.