Do you believe that happiness is a choice?

Answer 1

It depends. Happiness can be a choice most of the time, but there are always times when life just sucks and it is nearly impossible to "choose happiness".

I'll give you an example, in 2001 this was my year. February, Dale Earnhardtt died, my son was kicked out of his senior year of high school and his dad decided not to take him to alternative school, April, I found out my mom was going to die within the year and I had to fire over 140 people I had hired in the past year. August, I quit my job to start my own company, September, of course 9/11 happened and then my husband decided he would rather sleep with his secretary than stay married to me.

So, as you can see, I kept trying to choose happiness, but first I had to get through my entire plate of s***

I think you can choose happiness on most days/years. I think perpetually pesimistic people choose to see the world as bad and unfair. But I also know that sometimes, happiness is not a choice.

Answer 2

Yes it is a choice. We will all have times in our lives, when we can't help but be sad, ie.. death, divorce, job loss etc.. We all have to grieve for these events, that is healthy. The choice we have is how we grieve and how long we grieve for. We can grieve by being angry, or we can be depressed. Then after we grieve, we have to choose to be happy and get on with life. We have to choose to look for things that make us happy and that will make our lives better. Choosing to always be sad and never get over something, is very unhealthy. I personally choose to be happy most of the time. Not perma-grin, Barney happy, but content and happy. That is a choice I make, it is not always easy, but it is a choice.

Answer 3

Yes, happiness is a choice. You always have the choice to let something affect you negatively.

Answer 4

Definately! You can choose to live for the moment or complain about everything, including the weather. Here, as I look out my window, it is overcast. A gray sky looking like it might rain. A lot of people would describe it as miserable. Why? Being miserable is just a state of mind. I choose to be happy and most of the time I am.

Answer 5

I do not believe that there is a clear cut answer. There can be circumstances that surround your life that may be out of your control. Overbareing parents or controlling spouses, can take away real happiness. People in your life can offer their opinions and suggest things that can be done without taking your power of self control away. Then there can be people who believe that there suggestions are the only truth and take the harmoney out of your life. If there is someone in your life that is making you unhappy and even depressed, you need to let them know that in the case of them making suggestions that they(the good guys) may truely be in they feel--would be a helpful suggestion--let them know that you appreciate their consern but that you feel that you need to consider your own ideas. Those who are just pushy about making their ideas-your ideas that they need to back off!!! As nicely as you can, but if they are just "bad asses" tell them that you don't need them to plan your life and to tell them to get lost. The only happiness you are going to get is when you live your life by your own choice. Listen--I know that there is a God, and even with true friends, you can bounce your thoughts and choices or ideas off of them- only to those you truely feel comfortable with and trust. And God will always listen AND answer-you just need the patients to be willing to wait-listen and watch for Gods answers--But ya have to have faith.
God bless
Forever

Answer 6

Hello- Yes I do. I would rather be a happy type of person, then always looking for something to go wrong. Just like the song- Don't worry, Be Happy. It is better!!

Answer 7

Nope. I suffer from chemical disturbances in the brain and somethins I want to be happy, but I can't. Sometimes, it's not a choice

Answer 8

Yes I do. Of course there are numerous factors that contribute to personal happiness but in the end we make the decision for ourselves. Are you happy?

Answer 9

Absolutely, happiness is indeed a choice.

Answer 10

I think everyone´s brain work differently. Depressed people have messed up neurotrasmiters, and they cause the symptoms. On the other hand, thoughts are energy and energy can turn into reality. That´s why through positive thinking you can create your own reality. [e-mail]