NationStates Jolt Archive

Why are there so many unhappy people on NSG? Do we get a statistically disproportionate number of depression cases here? Is it a function of intelligence? Is it choice? Is it actually easier to be miserable than it is to be happy?

When I'm talking about happiness, I don't mean having an unrealistically and annoyingly cheerful outlook on life. Happiness, in my estimation, means having and showing appropriate emotions in an appropriate fashion, but being, essentially, content with life.

Everyone has their highs and lows, it just seems a lot of us are low more often and for longer than they are high (not chemically). I, of course, discount emo teens who are, just because of who and what they are, depressed. I also discount the season, which seems to make things worse for a number of people.

We get threads that are intended to be cheerful and pleasant and someone, invariable, comes along and finds a reason to turn it into a bitch fest and attempts to drag everyone down to his/her level of misery. Everyone does it occasionally, but there are some who do it all the time. Why?

They're all depressed because they're on NSG

Everyone happy has something better to do.

Discounting those two jokes, it seems to me that the smartest people I know are not the happiest. So perhaps that is it. But don't quote me or anything, no expert.

I'm a bit low right now. Cause of having to change my major and adjust my whole view of my future, had some relationship troubles and major stress about this class. I really need to get happy again this month because if I'm already this bad now, January is going to suck (January is like the hangover of the year for me. It's the most depressing month).

And then some posters just get depressed for reasons that they don't even know themselves. Poor NSGers.

NSG trends leftist.

NSG trends toward depression according to the OP.

connection? :p

I'm here, and I'm happy, but that could just be because my favorite moron got arrested yesterday.

I'm here, and I'm happy, but that could just be because my favorite moron got arrested yesterday.

Awesome.

I find being unhappy takes more effort than it is worth.

Well, I have a reason. After 2 years of massive stressing I got depressed. I try not to let it effect NS too much but I slip form time to time. Howver, I am on the road to recovery and have been rather docile.

Not caring is the easiest thing ever.

<snip> ... someone, invariable, comes along and finds a reason to turn it into a bitch fest and attempts to drag everyone down to his/her level of misery. Everyone does it occasionally, but there are some who do it all the time. Why?

They are nobly sacrificing themselves in order to bolster the mods' sense of self-worth by making us feel useful.


On the whole, I'd say happy is harder work than sad getting there, but self-sustaining when you make it.

Hmm... I don't think intelligence has a direct impact, but intelligence certainly affects people's outlook on life. The more intelligent you are/think you are, the higher your aspirations in life, the higher the odds you will be disappointed, and thus, the higher the likelihood you will have reasons to feel depressed and frustrated with life.

If you mean the sort of "happy" that keeps on even when outside events are burning down the house or washing the car away in a flood or worse, that's really hard work.

Why are there so many unhappy people on NSG? Do we get a statistically disproportionate number of depression cases here? Is it a function of intelligence? Is it choice? Is it actually easier to be miserable than it is to be happy?It's not, but you'll find a larger number of people that are dissatisfied with what is called "Real Life" spend more time online: playing games, blogging, surfing, chatting, or posting on forums. Then there's the anonymity posting affords, meaning some people will be more inclined to tell strangers they'll never meet about how bad they really feel. Hence there'll be a larger number of people talking about how bad they feel on a forum than you'll meet in the street.

Everyone here is damaged goods of some sort.

I'm not happy, for whatever reason. I suppose I'm just not a naturally happy person.

I'm not happy but then I can't say I'm always unhappy. But I would say deep down for long term reasons and major issues affecting my life I am unhappy.

I have an interview tomorrow and they are looking for people who are happy and bubbly, so I will need to get myself happy by tomorrow arvo. Maybe I should smoke some pot or get drunk first.

I'm slightly annoyed due to pretty much running out of money and the fact the assignments I'm doing are causing me extra amounts of stress.

Why are there so many unhappy people on NSG? Do we get a statistically disproportionate number of depression cases here? Is it a function of intelligence? Is it choice? Is it actually easier to be miserable than it is to be happy?

When I'm talking about happiness, I don't mean having an unrealistically and annoyingly cheerful outlook on life. Happiness, in my estimation, means having and showing appropriate emotions in an appropriate fashion, but being, essentially, content with life.

Everyone has their highs and lows, it just seems a lot of us are low more often and for longer than they are high (not chemically). I, of course, discount emo teens who are, just because of who and what they are, depressed. I also discount the season, which seems to make things worse for a number of people.

We get threads that are intended to be cheerful and pleasant and someone, invariable, comes along and finds a reason to turn it into a bitch fest and attempts to drag everyone down to his/her level of misery. Everyone does it occasionally, but there are some who do it all the time. Why?


I'll put it down the Xmas blues, and leave it at that.

Why are there so many unhappy people on NSG? Do we get a statistically disproportionate number of depression cases here? Is it a function of intelligence? Is it choice? Is it actually easier to be miserable than it is to be happy?

When I'm talking about happiness, I don't mean having an unrealistically and annoyingly cheerful outlook on life. Happiness, in my estimation, means having and showing appropriate emotions in an appropriate fashion, but being, essentially, content with life.Well, certainly we have lots of people who are discontent with life.
I suppose the reasons are unique to each person.

I'll put it down the Xmas blues, and leave it at that.

Question: what kind of blues song you could make from Christmas? I'm serious.

Question: what kind of blues song you could make from Christmas? I'm serious.

'I have the old my parents spent more money on my brothers present than mine blues'

'I saw mummy sucking santa clause, whilst papa was down the pub blues'

'The tree fell over and killed the cat blues'

And so on and so forth.

Its been shown before that
optimists are usually happy
pessimists are usually right


for all you optimists
Eat, drink, and be Merry
Pay no attention to the Monster outside the door.

Eh...personally I'm regularly a bit grumpy because of body issues, epic social fail, and the fact that as my university life draws to a close I'm edging closer and closer to a life of inevitable underachievement and underemployment. Yeh, that about sums it up. Happy times :) Besides, what sort of well-adjusted, fulfilled individual comes on a forum to spit bile at others in written form on a range of usually quite unimportant issues? Hmm?

I reckon it's the age range of our members.

there's a seductive gratification to bitching. that's why so many do it. i'm not imune to this myself. i think its a mistake to base conclusions of a majority being happy or sad on the impression this creates.

i think right now, what would make a majority of people happy, is so unfamiliar to them, that they just can't/won't believe any attempt by myself to suggest it.

and by that i DON'T mean the suggestions of any priesthood or brand flavour of belief affectionadoes either.

i think there is a greatest happiness without emotional attatchment, when we can set ourselves loose, set aside our internal dialog for a few moments. even just that, if that's as much as we can.

that and of course, the thing people so much, especially when we're constantly being bombarded with persuasions to the contrary, i think don't really understand about happiness, is that its a byproduct, something that can only be persued periferally, that it is a by product of being engauged in a proccess, for each of us individually, a unique specific proccess, unique to ourselves, that we enjoy being engauged in, in doing.

whether it's art, in some sense of another of the word, or solving mechanical puzzles of some sort, its inhierent in our nature as sentient beings, in what makes us sentient, this proccess of creative synthisis. that and the other is exploration and discouvery, which isn't unique to our species, but is one of the things that virtually all mammalian and possibly even reptilian/bird/fish sepcies as well, share.

When I'm in a really good mood I tend to spend less time in front of a computer - when I'm a little down I usually do not feel like going outside much, hence I spend time here.

However, I'm pretty satisfied with how things have developed in recent months and weeks - so I also come here just to hang out a little.

I suspect I'm just a natural cynic/pessimist/misanthrope, however, my immediate bad mood is the result of being on crutches, still, and having a grindingly nasty chest infection.

Why are there so many unhappy people on NSG?
We're sooo looooonely *violins etc.*

I suspect I'm just a natural cynic/pessimist/misanthrope, however, my immediate bad mood is the result of being on crutches, still, and having a grindingly nasty chest infection.
Must be hard to type on crutches :tongue:

Must be hard to type on crutches :tongue:

It's the sympathy of strangers that I find most depressing, that and the fact none of my jeans fit over the leg brace.

I opt for the middle road. It's stable, predictable and oddly boring. It requires little if any effort.

Also there seems to be the tendency to mistake passion for x cause with being in a bad mood. I call it hitting a nerve. Everyone nerves are in different places.

In the US we are seeing rampant unemployment, former bastions of capitalism failing daily (Banks, Insurance companies, Automakers). Add to that we are just coming off one of the highest and longest bull markets in recent memory. So I suppose there is the sense that the party is over and it is time to get back to work.

It's the sympathy of strangers that I find most depressing, that and the fact none of my jeans fit over the leg brace.
Best excuse to go outside in boxers I've ever heard!!!

It's the sympathy of strangers that I find most depressing, that and the fact none of my jeans fit over the leg brace.

Best excuse to go outside in boxers I've ever heard!!!

Not having to wear pants! How can you not be happy about that?

Not having to wear pants! How can you not be happy about that?It's winter in our region.

I'm slightly annoyed due to pretty much running out of money and the fact the assignments I'm doing are causing me extra amounts of stress.

90% of the reason I am a bit grumpy has to do with the fact that I am overworked due to a combination of School and Work.

... body issues, epic social fail, and the fact that as my university life draws to a close I'm edging closer and closer to a life of inevitable underachievement and underemployment. ...

Well I can't say anything is broken so I guess I'm lucky there... But I am sick. I'm just starting a masters program and it's ridiculously hard! I'm functioning on 3 -4 hrs a night and I can't help procrastinating despite the fact that I have a 'refarat' to start on Tuesday, a program with bugs that should be fixed by tomorrow morning and a wordlist of about 3000 words from Swabian-German to find the meaning of (don't bother to ask why). I also have regular reading averaging 300 - 400 pages a week, sometimes more, sometimes less.

I feel like I'm totally overwhelmed by all the work. And to make matters worse I live in Germany - and I've lived here for *3* years already and my German is still terrible.

Why are there so many unhappy people on NSG? Do we get a statistically disproportionate number of depression cases here? Is it a function of intelligence? Is it choice? Is it actually easier to be miserable than it is to be happy?

When I'm talking about happiness, I don't mean having an unrealistically and annoyingly cheerful outlook on life. Happiness, in my estimation, means having and showing appropriate emotions in an appropriate fashion, but being, essentially, content with life.

Everyone has their highs and lows, it just seems a lot of us are low more often and for longer than they are high (not chemically). I, of course, discount emo teens who are, just because of who and what they are, depressed. I also discount the season, which seems to make things worse for a number of people.

We get threads that are intended to be cheerful and pleasant and someone, invariable, comes along and finds a reason to turn it into a bitch fest and attempts to drag everyone down to his/her level of misery. Everyone does it occasionally, but there are some who do it all the time. Why?

'to come by knowledge you have not, you must go by a way which you know not', so if you really want a clear answer try talking to people about this and you might be surprised by the clear differences in answers people give you. As opposed to this internet chat.
Trouble is if you search for facts and reason, it all to often leads to sadness, and very rarely happiness. It's like the search for perfection which dominates fashion or human bodies, it's endless and it's just not worth it because perfection is impossible.

What i'm trying to say is it's a very complicated question you are asking, because it's easy to confuse my own experience with emtions as compared to a wider experience. It's a very subjective topic, so trying to measure happiness objectively becomes too difficult.

As for people bringing others down, that is part of a script inside our heads to be like other people, if someone is unhappy it's normal to try and copy that person, just as a by-product of human interaction. because typically humans recruit other people like themselves, so in many cases if you have a large group of people (as in folks at a rock concert, or an opera) you have alot of people who share very similar scripts.
Following this reasoning, if this forum strays toward factual or negative responses then more people who prefer negative responses will be attracted to it.

It's a vicious cycle, or a really fun experience depending on your outlook.
does that answer your question(s)?
:confused:

I am just a naturally wretched person. I have emotional highs, but they're just irrational exuberance and less healthy than my usual suicidal nature.
That, and the Holidays are coming up. I've got three weeks at my parent's house in the shitty Columbus suburb they moved to a couple years ago. Nothing to do but dwell on what a disaster the past year has been, the mere thought of it is enough to make a bottle of cyanide sound delicious.

I don't know why the rest of NSG is depressed, probably has something to do with the way their pants fit.

I am just a naturally wretched person. I have emotional highs, but they're just irrational exuberance and less healthy than my usual suicidal nature.
That, and the Holidays are coming up. I've got three weeks at my parent's house in the shitty Columbus suburb they moved to a couple years ago. Nothing to do but dwell on what a disaster the past year has been, the mere thought of it is enough to make a bottle of cyanide sound delicious.

I don't know why the rest of NSG is depressed, probably has something to do with the way their pants fit.

Ever tried snowboarding?

ah the days when i used to wear panties...i mean pants....i mean i always wear pants....except when in the shower...no i don't wear panties in the shower either...

It's winter in our region.
Afraid of shrinkage?

In my limited experience, NSG seems to overindex in depressed randy gay perverted roleplaying bleeding-heart-liberal hentai fans.

And an amusing spattering of grammar-nazis and dyslexics that just about balance each other out. But that's what makes the forum entertaining!

I think it's just easier to talk about depression on an anonymous forum, so you get more of it. And we seem to be a surprisingly supportive bunch when someone does!

Life's too short to be sad. But people that are happy all the time are insufferable. So I reserve melancholy for periods of private drunken contemplation after getting back from a night out.

Its the internet. People bitch on the internet. No one goes on an internet forum to say how happy they are.

IDK what this has to do with NSG, but for me it is easier to not do my schoolwork, and beat myself up about it, than it is to actually do my work and be happy with my success

Its the internet. People bitch on the internet. No one goes on an internet forum to say how happy they are.
??? (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=576069)

I'm sorry but ninnys with their happy heads in the sand are depressing. That's just the way it is.

It's winter in our region.

Pussy.

I´m naturally cynical.

"Ignorance is bliss", Strings together intelligence and happiness rather nicely i´d say!

Its the internet. People bitch on the internet. No one goes on an internet forum to say how happy they are.

Really? I never bitch about my problems on the internet,I think that unfair & kinda cowardly,after all what are the ppl on the internet gonna do about my life problems?

But when I have good news, I tend to share it. It rare,but I when i do I like to tell other people on the internet. Because in RL it would seem too werid to as most people thnik I a very sad and wacked type of person.

So in other words...their expections to every rule...

If you mean the sort of "happy" that keeps on even when outside events are burning down the house or washing the car away in a flood or worse, that's really hard work.It's not that hard for me. I'm just...naturally happy, I guess.

Its the internet. People bitch on the internet. No one goes on an internet forum to say how happy they are.I am having a good day. It consisted of sleeping through both Advanced Math and Honors Chemistry, and I also finished all of my pages ahead of our dead-line for Yearbook (Just wrapped up the last page today.). I am able to exempt my Honors Chemistry exam, I am happy. :D

I thought the title was "Happy or Sad... Which Is Easter?" until I read to the end and found no mention of Easter. :/

I'm going to go to my emo corner and rock and cry, now.

I'm going to go to my emo corner and rock and cry, now.Like, don't be sad, little dudette! :D

If you mean the sort of "happy" that keeps on even when outside events are burning down the house or washing the car away in a flood or worse, that's really hard work.

No, I mean the sort of happy that rebounds from these things. A person can have appropriate emotional reactions to circumstances and still have a basically good outlook on life. I'm told this is healthy.

In my limited experience, NSG seems to overindex in depressed randy gay perverted roleplaying bleeding-heart-liberal hentai fans.

I resent the bleeding heart quip.

Holy Cheese and ShoesIn my limited experience, NSG seems to overindex in depressed randy gay perverted roleplaying bleeding-heart-liberal hentai fans.

And an amusing spattering of grammar-nazis and dyslexics that just about balance each other out. But that's what makes the forum entertaining!
Your first sentence pretty much describes Nanatsu perfectly, without the roleplaying though.:eek:
I resent the bleeding heart quip.

I resent the 'bleeding heart-liberal', i don't have a heart and if i did it wouldn't bleed for you guys.
so there. :eek2: