Ever notice that the happiness you thought you would experience from an event made you feel ‘happy’, but it didn’t last as long and all was well as before? Do you remember those moments where you thought you would never recover from an awful event that occurred to you? How do we feel different when we have the conditions/events we want? Why is it that, even though we believe we are never the same after we have broken up with our partner, we find that we can move on with our lives without feeling sad.

Lykken and Tellegen discuss the answers to these questions in the Theories of hedonic adaptation. According to the Hedonic adaptation theory Individuals can return to their original happiness balance by adapting to the new circumstances that arise after receiving good or bad news. The happiness balance point is a natural state of well-being. According to the research, Individuals should return to their roots. Happiness point After a life-changing event, or in other words, three months average time for adaptation. In this instance, the individual’s responses to negative events and those of positive events can be neutralized, and balance is achieved.

Our ability to adapt is not limited to us. Psychological responses. The body has the ability to adapt to its environment. One example is when we cook a dish in our house. After a while, the smell stops. We have an innate ability to adapt to any size.

Is there an exception to our adaptability?

Imagine yourself walking along the street one day. A reporter approaches you as you walk on the street and tells you, “How would you feel if you won a huge jackpot from the lottery? Suppose he asked a question. What would be your answer? Is it applicable to all good and bad events? It is not surprising that people would say that happiness will increase to the maximum level. This is not true. Some studies have shown that people are able to adjust to any event, no matter how bad or good, and return to a point of balance. It was even found! People who get a large budget bonus after a period of time have the same level happiness. As normal people.

Let’s look at another example: a study on the richest men in the world. The survey was conducted with 100 of America’s most successful businesspeople. Happiness levels of well-off businesspeople People with average incomes were compared and the difference was very small. Wealth did not make a huge difference in happiness perceptions, as predicted. 37 out of 100 business professionals also had a similar result. Ten of the respondents stated they were happier than the average person.

The Dilemma of Adaptation

We know that adaptability is the key to these results, as evidenced by the research. This perspective alone makes it seem terrible that we are able to adapt to wonderful life events. Let’s take a look at this situation from a different angle.

We all experience life events that can be painful, stressful, and mentally challenging. The loss of a loved one, a traffic accident, being fired, cancer… This is where our ability to adapt comes into play. We can adapt to all the things we don’t want to deal with; we learn to live with them.

Let’s take as an example: Pandemic. Although the situation was new for everyone, it took three months for the epidemic to become widespread. After that, most people were able to adapt and use disinfectants, masks, and not to shake hands. Walking away from people became a common occurrence. Although there is still a risk of getting sick, the level of anxiety has declined.

This and other cases show that if we continue to have severe adverse reactions during the initial days, it will be difficult for many of us in this case and others to move on and enjoy our lives and protect ourselves. Psychological health.

Psychology confirms that we are capable of adapting to all kinds of events, whether they be good or bad. The ability to adapt is confirmed by daily life experiences. It all depends on how we look at the situation. But, I believe that having an ability to adapt is a good thing. Balance point for humans, and our efforts towards returning to that balance point are the best for our psychological health.