
A new analysis of age and life satisfaction - rafaelc
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2017/08/24/under-50-you-still-havent-hit-rock-bottom-happiness-wise/?utm_term=.645da32cbf4f
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mirimir
I suspect that there's some survivorship bias at play. Maybe people who are
happier, and/or have more reason to be happy, are more likely to survive.

When I was young, I didn't worry about much because I could get serious later.
Now I don't worry about much because I've learned to be happy with what I
have. The middle, however, was hell at times.

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d--b
I find it amusing when scientists spend years of research validating some
common knowledge.

I wish they titled the article 'mid-life crisis: it's a thing!'

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gumby
Often such studies _invalidate_ what "everybody knows". Sometimes the
corrections are major (heliocentrism, evolution), sometimes smaller.

Or investigate a common phenomenon and unlock something deeper. Some of the
musings in this HN thread are of that nature.

I don't see any reason to sneer.

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GuiA
Well that sucks, my teenage years and twenties have been fairly miserable, I
thought it was supposed to be that way only to get better as you mature, get
to know yourself, and obtain some life experience and perspective as you get
into your 30s (currently in late 20s).

Guess I'll have to wait another 30 years or so to not feel miserable every
night.

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j9461701
I know it sounds trite, but if you haven't I really recommend taking up some
kind of exercise. It's frankly amazing how fast my general attitude turned
around when I started swimming a few hours a week. The malaise I'd been living
in since I was a teenager evaporated in a few days, and I was like a
completely new person. Every so often I'll get a little lazy and not go for a
bit, and the stupefying brain fog of depression always serves as a pointed
reminder.

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tom_wilde
+1 !

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visarga
Happiness curve seems to inversely correlate with the work curve. The more
hours per day we work, the less happy we are.

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Simon_says
Seems like the nadir of happiness might track when a lot of people have
teenagers in the house. I wish they had adjusted for that factor, in addition
to income and health.

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cristianpascu
It was funny to me to read about the people at fifty, at the peak of their
carrier and with teenagers in their house. I am 36 and have both. The first
one is debatable, but the second one is 15 years old. :) I hope it'll get
better from now on.

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markcmyers
The curve for divorce takes the same U shape, though it's steeper. It peaks
around 60. This might suggest that unhappiness in marriage plays a role in
overall unhappiness. In their early 20s most people aren't yet married to
wrong partners. By their 60s most people who ever married have either divorced
wrong partners or are living in bearable marriages.

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jimhefferon
It's when they are trying to get rid of you (of your salary).

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corndoge
what a pretentious article title, it's like depression / mental illness
doesn't even exist

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coldtea
What does "pretentious" even mean in this context?

And what does depression / mental illness even have to do with the survey and
what the article discusses?

The article is about how happy/satisfied with their life people IN GENERAL are
at various stages. It explicitly says "1.3 million randomly sampled people
from 51 countries". All kinds of people, not just depressed or non-depressed
alone.

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JacksonGariety
What about people with illnesses (physical and mental) or simply genuine
misfortune who have overcome it? The author apparently doesn't care about
them. Flagged.

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JacksonGariety
Why downvote this comment? Genuinely curious. The article poorly is written
and makes all sorts of potentially offensive assumptions. Why have it on the
front page?

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coldtea
> _Why downvote this comment? Genuinely curious._

Because it raised a complaint that had nothing to do with the article. That's
an article describing the results from a study on self-reported happiness
level through people's lives from 1.3 million sample respondents. The question
about "misfortune" is a non sequitur -- out of the scope of the study, and
irrelevant to it. Those 1.3 million random samples will still have the same
distribution of misfortunes as the general population in their countries.

Second, because it didn't seem to differentiate between a journalist reporting
on the results of a survey, and those that did the survey.

Third, because I don't find the article poorly written, and I don't
particularly care whether someone "flagged" it or not -- reminded me of those
who bring up "cancelling their subscription" in their letters to the editor.

