Welcome to the Health Activist Writer’s Month Challenge brought together by WEGO Health – a social network for all health activists.  Again, I am participating in the annual Writer’s Month Challenge in which I will be writing about my health activism and health condition based upon given prompts.

Thursday April 2nd: Key to Happiness 

What do you think is the key to happiness?  Is it being able to overcome a hard time?  Laughter?  Maintaining a positive attitude?  Tell us what you think and why.

Happiness is simply defined as ‘the state of being happy’.

The definition itself may be universal but the meaning behind the word is different for every individual.  Just like we all have different likes and interests, what makes us happy is different for all of us.

However, modern life has taught us that happiness is contingent upon our accomplishments, and not having any troubles to speak of.  On this basis, therefore, a person such as me living with a chronic illness which causes a lot of troubles in my day-to-day life, should not be happy. This is cannot be further from the truth as many of the happiest people whom I have known over the years as had to endure some sort of hardship of some kind.

“Happiness is a journey not a destination” is a fantastic example of the depiction of happiness in our modern lives; we are so focused on the end result which we think will bring us happiness, we forget however to appreciate the simple day-to-day pleasures.  We are too busy rushing around to see the beauty of the world around us.

Living with a chronic illness, at times can be exceptionally difficult due to wavering severity of symptoms and the rollercoaster of emotions it evokes.  However, I  also believe that living with a chronic illness can also allows us to stop within our daily lives and appreciate the simplest of pleasures such as the relief of a warm bubblebath or our favourite song playing on the radio.  Chronic illness can cause us to enjoy and appreciate the journey rather than focusing on the destination as many do due to the demands of modern living.

Finding simple pleasures to enjoy and allowing them to bring happiness is just important key to happiness, but as often the door to happiness is often locked to us when we are struggling and experiencing difficult times, there is always more than one key to unlock the door and find happiness on the other side.

One other important key is remaining positive and embracing hope.  Surrounding myself with positivity and the favourite inspirational quotes that adorn my bedroom helps to keep the light on during my darkest days and gives me hope for a brighter tomorrow.  They are not a miracle cure for the down days that I often experience as a result of living with a neurological condition but they are a reminder that these feelings and the severity of the symptoms at that particular moment, are just that a fleeting moment in a much longer series of moments.

But more importantly, happiness cannot be bought or be given by materialistic objects but by those people we are surrounded by, who give us comfort and support when we are in need of it most and also by the little moments of pleasure that makes life worth living (despite living with a chronic illness).