Happiness as a default temperament

I can only think of one person I've met over the years who seems to be permanently happy under almost any circumstance. Though it may be that I am just a part of social circles who tend not to attract many people like that. Anyone here know anyone who's just always happy? Is it ever a hindrance? Seems like something that would never be a setback, except when it comes to empathizing with people who aren't usually happy. Even then it would still probably be easier to help those people without having any emotional baggage of one's own. Are YOU happy by default? If so, congrats, that must be awesome. Please do share.

This article is what got me thinking about it:

http://www.nytimes.com/2002/12/31/health/psychology/31BEHA.html?pagewanted=all&position=top

I associate those types of people with being naive. I usually find out later that they are just Mormon.

Off-topic: why is the opposite of hyerthymia called dysthymia? Why isn't it hypothymia?

  On 3/27/2011 at 1:57 AM, OneToThirtySix said:

I associate those types of people with being naive. I usually find out later that they are just Mormon.

 

Off-topic: why is the opposite of hyerthymia called dysthymia? Why isn't it hypothymia?

Is this a serious question?

this describes me precisely. i dont ever experience anger, not since i was about 17.

most of the people ive encountered that seem to be happy all the time also come off as being slightly manic. what would being happy all the time really mean? i wonder what the grieving process was like for that woman mentioned in the article..

Knew a girl who I thought was like that but then she ran in front of a car and spent a year in a mental hospital. In short, no.

i'm very much attracted to girls that are/seem? that way.

I'm happy all the fucking time.

i actually had a client who was this sort of person. I found it so strange that he was going through everything that he was, physical pain, financial ruin, anxiety traveling far from home, all after a crazy vehicle accident, but was still way fucking happier than I was. My dad took a picture of a dude in Thailand who was homeless poor and looked to be in shitty health but super happy about everything.

Just more happy chemicals in their brains that's all.

  On 3/27/2011 at 5:38 AM, messiaen said:

this describes me precisely. i dont ever experience anger, not since i was about 17.

Do you not feel sadness either? My anger tends to be reserved for inanimate objects and people who are angry at me for reasons I feel are unwarranted. Otherwise I'm usually pretty calm. Most of my negative emotions are very short lived, but I have gone through a couple periods of prolonged depression.

  On 3/27/2011 at 5:53 AM, Z_B_Z said:

most of the people ive encountered that seem to be happy all the time also come off as being slightly manic.

The person I know of who fits the happy by default description never strikes me as manic, he's just always in a good mood and never troubled by anything.

  On 3/27/2011 at 6:40 AM, Zephyr_Nova said:

 

  On 3/27/2011 at 5:53 AM, Z_B_Z said:

most of the people ive encountered that seem to be happy all the time also come off as being slightly manic.

 

The person I know of who fits the happy by default description never strikes me as manic, he's just always in a good mood and never troubled by anything.

well good for him then. but never troubled by anything, really?

this thread makes me want to watch the film 'being there.' "life... is a state of mind."

  On 3/27/2011 at 6:39 AM, Franklin said:

i actually had a client who was this sort of person. I found it so strange that he was going through everything that he was, physical pain, financial ruin, anxiety traveling far from home, all after a crazy vehicle accident, but was still way fucking happier than I was. My dad took a picture of a dude in Thailand who was homeless poor and looked to be in shitty health but super happy about everything.

 

Just more happy chemicals in their brains that's all.

Yeah, pretty much. I imagine we're not so far away from just being able to reconfigure our brains to the happy by default setting. What a strange world that would be... a better one to be sure, but the idea's still kind of creepy. I wonder if sad music would be appreciated as much to someone with that disposition. I do loves me some sad music/movies and wouldn't really want to give that up.

  On 3/27/2011 at 6:44 AM, Z_B_Z said:

well good for him then. but never troubled by anything, really?

It is quite peculiar. I think he cried a bit after his grandfather died, but beyond that he seems to be pretty much cool with everything.

  On 3/27/2011 at 6:47 AM, Zephyr_Nova said:

  On 3/27/2011 at 6:44 AM, Z_B_Z said:

well good for him then. but never troubled by anything, really?

 

It is quite peculiar. I think he cried a bit after his grandfather died, but beyond that he seems to be pretty much cool with everything.

Is he boring?

edit: Other than having an entertaining disposition.

I'm pretty much happy all the time. If/when I get angry or sad, it's never more than a few minutes... though I do love me some sad musics.

lots of sad music doesn't make me sad. i thought i'd add that. in fact sometimes sad music makes me happy..

but i'm not always happy

i wouldnt necessarily say that sad music makes me happy, but it does bring on a kind of relief, which makes it easier for me to get into a happier state of mind. its cathartic.

yes

  On 3/27/2011 at 6:49 AM, wake said:

Is he boring?

Not at all. He can be hysterically funny at times, and he's extremely intelligent. Plus he's pretty much game for anything. So no, not boring at all.

I really enjoy sad music anytime, particularly when I'm happy. So I imagine it's not necessarily any different for someone who's just happy all the time.

why particularly when youre happy?

all emotion subject to change at any given time, constants changing, etc - bipolar, so to speak, but not diagnosed.

  On 3/27/2011 at 8:08 AM, Z_B_Z said:

why particularly when youre happy?

Well for one thing, when I'm depressed I don't enjoy anything as much. It still usually provides some catharsis, but sometimes it evokes utter indifference from me, which is just more depressing. If I'm in a good mood I can see the beauty in most things, and sometimes the saddest music holds the most profound beauty. That sounds schmaltzy as hell... but it's usually true.

yeah, i can see where youre coming from. although ive had some pretty profound experiences with film and music that have pulled me out of deep depressions.. im a firm believer in the notion that art (in any form) has the ability to save lives. but i suppose im straying from the topic..

Oh yeah, without a doubt great art can hold that power for people. It's like a substitute for religion. I think music creation has kept me out of those deep depressions for quite a while, and when I'm not doing that I'm usually either listening to music or watching films that inspire me. Without art I would be completely lost.

practicing buddism was probably the closest i got to achieving 'happiness' every day but i don't define that word int he sense of feeling extremely upbeat or positive, just trying to be free of negative emotions. Once you get out of practice it's not just something you can snap back into, at least for me.