I genuinely don’t know. I only know what makes me momentarily forget about the lack of happines but I don’t think that’s the same thing.
I would normally say thats strange, but after covid, I can only say its normal.
I want to go back to the 1990s but have to be here in 2025.
Anhedonia perhaps?
Bird photography. I’m a person who tends toward depression. It was honestly very surprising the first time I noticed that when I’m photographing birds I have a huge smile on my face the whole time.
I’ve been learning the ins and outs of my camera gear for the last year and making small improvements is really satisfying. But really it’s just being out in nature, looking at adorable birds and capturing those moments for later.
Very cool way to address depression, but I am getting a “me and the wife noticed you from across the bar” kinda vibe off this bird ngl
His wife:
Love herons!
Dopamine mostly
Walking my dog in a winter forest.
Tinkering/assembling stuff and see it come to life. Bonus points if it’s something my kids can join in on.
Other contenders: (good) food, music, weather
Cheese.
A simple man I see
“Sometimes, I dream about cheese…”
Sometimes you got to say, “Please”
Sometimes you got to say, “Hey”
Video games.
It really depends. Sometimes it’s drumming, sometimes going on an outing and doing car karaoke on the way, and sometimes I can’t find anything that helps and just have to wait for unhappiness to subside.
Cuddling with my partner in bed. Especially early in the morning, when I give myself an extra half hour to just stay close together for a little while longer.
Someone else’s genitals on my face.
Fixing things. Mostly if it’s for someone else.
Unfortunately as far as work goes, two of the things that make me most unhappy: driving, traffic, are tied to the job of fixing things for people so I quit that job :/
Damn. I usually got around that by having people send things to me to fix at my workbench, and then I mail them back.
Making music
I’d say probably dopamine, serotonin, endorphins, and oxytocin.
oxytocin
Unless you trauma-bonded with an abuser
You know it’s a naturally produced hormone, right?
Yes, very natural.
Natural for mothers to yell at their kids, tell them they’re worthless, then next day go “I love you”.
(sorry I’m not in a good mood, anger isn’t directed at you)
Apologies if this stirred up some shit.
Interestingly, oxytocin also augments in-group bias
There’s certainly a lot of that around here!
Substance abuse and PC gaming
I never thought I’d say this, but going to work actually makes me happy. I work with autistic and disabled children, and man, they give me life. Helping them learn and grow, seeing them pick up and apply new skills, hearing their unique observations, and witnessing their creativity all bring joy to my day.
I’m currently waiting for my first learner of the day to arrive, and I know that when he gets here he’ll be making the most joyful squeals as he plays with his favorite ball. His smile is like caffeine mixed with sunshine, energizing me every morning even on the hardest days.
Don’t get me wrong, this job has its challenges, but the fulfillment I get from working with this population is immeasurable. It took many years of crappy jobs with crappy management before I got here, and I’m glad to say I think I finally found the job where I belong.
Oh, thank you for this interesting perspective! It’s kind of rare for me to hear people to say that they like their jobs because many of them despise what they do because (most of the time) of unfair compensation and unfulfillment in life. Also because negativity shows up more often on social media.
I’m glad people like you exist. You’re making the world a better place
