81–90 of 148 posts
The idea of hacking the hedonic treadmill misses one important point: the mind adapts to these hacks as well. And now you are looking for more hacks.
Guess that's stepping off the treadmill. I'm interested in stoic philosophy as opposed to epicurian philosophy, so all this talk of the hedonic treadmill seems super weird to me.
:)
Anna Lembke’s “Dopamine Nation” has a lot of interesting takes on the subject. One takeaway I got is that dopamine seeks a balance. Opting for pleasure seeking often ends up getting experienced as pain. An example of that is drug tolerance. Oddly, the reverse is also true: seeking pain can often lead to an experience of pleasure. The invigorated feeling after a cold shower, or how hard exercise leads to highs. She is…
Are exercise highs real? Do all people experience them or is it a genetic niche? I've tried a bunch of different exercise methods. Gone running, swimming, weightlifting etc and I've never experienced anything close to a high afterward. I'll be tired, sometimes I'll feel proud of breaking a personal record but there's never any physical positive sensation or euphoria to me that would resemble the "runners high" that p…
I would prefer not to.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Don't you just end up on a "meaning treadmill" instead?
IME, meaning is far more satiating than happiness simply because it is able to offset more BS than being happy will. More to your question: what happens is your tolerance for meaninglessness decreases, which has good and bad side effects.
I think part of what keeps me locked on to the hedonistic treadmill is that a lot of other people (including my partner) don't like who I am when I'm trying to stay off it. I tend to get more intense about a lot of things most folks don't care about.
It's funny, out of my whole family & friend circle I'm probably doing the most damage to myself via self medication, but when I try to get serious about things that matter and take a break from intoxicants, I end up doing just as much damage or more by putting my relationships through pointless trials of fire.
But I know what you mean about meaning. When it's good, it's really good and worth every bit of seeking.
It's unfortunate there are so many pitfalls to dodge for so many of us.
Why is "Hedonic Treadmill" forced into blogspam titles like these? Was there a TED Talk recently?
> Variators are little modulations that keep experiences fresh
So...variety? Mind blown.
Pretty sure I’d be happier if I didn’t have to work for a living.
I recommend doing a hardcore survival course. You’ll come back knowing 1. you don’t need a job (you do need an occupation…) and 2. why you appreciate modern life, while at the same time why modern life is a bit sad, taking us away from our true habitat.
If you get degenerative chronic illness are you eventually just as happy as you were before it? No, we figured this out in the 70s. Why is "Hedonic Treadmill" forced into blogspam titles like these? Was there a TED Talk recently? > Variators are little modulations that keep experiences fresh So... variety ? Mind blown.
No, but that's also not what the HT hypothesis says. The treadmill pushes you back, not forward.
Awareness of the hedonic treadmill meshes quite well with my 'frugal' Yorkshire tendencies. A favourite on HN seems to be coffee, and spending ever more on 'good' coffee. I mainly just drink instant coffee, filter coffee for the weekend. I still get my 'good' coffee and I appreciate it. Same goes for wine and chocolate. It's also led me away from expensive experiences to unique/different experiences. It's also helpfu…
Pretty sure I’d be happier if I didn’t have to work for a living.
I've found out i'm a lot happier if i don't have to do overtime. Get out of the building at 5 and stop all work related things until the next working day. Sadly there are days i don't succeed in that, but the days it does make me happier and more relaxed.