Confessions of Happiness.

What is happiness? 

Does it occur through emotions, or is it innate? 

Is it something which can be attained by all or do we have to earn it? 

All of these questions are completely valid and it is something which has truly  put my life into perspective. Because currently as an optimistic person I'm struggling to find the positives, therefore I'm attempting to do some basic research to decipher, what it truly is. 

So What is Happiness? 

Happiness is an individualistic and intrinsic feeling to possess which can be acquired to all through different mediums, but it is our own personal experiences which make us feel the raw energy of the emotion.

The definition of Happiness is  "An emotional state of overall well being"... But I believe there's so much more to it than that. I believe that happiness has so many different layers which we simply cannot obtain through one form or realm.

Is it Innate?

Everything has an initial starting point, a spark which then has a catalyst of experiences which occur from that moment. A runner stands at the starting line, but they need the power and urge to continue the race and finish it. Just like happiness. We need to want to be happy to be able to achieve happiness.

Does this insinuate that it is innate. Absolutely fucking not. But we need to be able to picture and imagine happiness, and personally the idea of achieving it (to me) is innate.

I believe that they're are many layers of happiness.. There's emotional, physical, spiritual and educational sections within human nature and it is these which all have a need for happiness. We as human beings are creatures of desires and within these desires we feel a necessity to achieve an overall state of euphoria, the opitomy of happiness and if we eclectically combine all of these individual sections and attain happiness within them all, it is then when we can achieve this. 

-But we need to be willing to the commitment of exercising them properly, rather than having excessive amounts of happiness in one category in comparison to another.

But is it truly achievable? Can humans truly attain this perfect happy state?

Utilitarianism always springs to mind when I think about happiness as peoples morality seems to conflict with it depending on whether it is under the act or rule category.

Act utilitarianism is a theory hypothesized by Jeremy Bentham which takes on the aspect of hedonism and our abilities to understand pleasure and categorise them into an order which would appease the individual most; whilst Rule utilitarianism is a progressed version which looks at achieving happiness to the masses and to be honest...I do not believe we can truly make everyone happy in order to achieve our own personal state of euphoria. 

I look at utilitarianism and see the guidelines of the "Rule" and believe that these are the most appealing. They acquire positives for the masses and on paper it seems the most attractive but in regards to reality, this is impossible. 

As humans we are slaves to our instincts, we love gluttonous behaviour to feed our basic needs, wants and desires and have a natural urges to do so. I mean look at our current subculture of technology, we feel the urge to express our emotions, share pictures of our new possessions over social media and change our appearance to conform to public approval and we are all guilty of this.. It for some reason makes us feel fulfilled. But not all of us conform to this, which to many seems strange but take us back 3-4 decades we never had the ability to do so,

But after ranting I will ever so rapidly return to my idea of Utilitarianism and how it effects our happiness.

We are selfish creatures of indulgence, who aspire to having more than we possibly need. Therefore we sometimes do not see that what we have in front of us and how it is perfectly ample for fulfilling our happiness and sometimes people get hurt, but is this the way to live? I believe that it isn't and we should not hurt others to attain what we truly want.

We are, as far as we have discovered, the most intellectual creatures on this earth and have developed moral codes, rules and laws which we abide by and I truly believe that when we aim to achieve happiness we should not damage or hurt another human just to attain our end goal. So respectively decline the basic ideas of act utilitarianism.

Can we all Achieve Happiness?

If we want to be truly happy yes appease your basic needs but do not use hate filled methods in doing so. Be true to yourself and honest to find what you truly want.

Aristotle once said that "it is not one swallow or fine day that makes a spring, so it is not a day or a short time that makes a man blessed and happy.." And I truly agree with this.

Yes happiness can be felt throughout life at different periods through different mediums such as emotions, items, etc. But we truly need to be positive in order to attain it, and through this positivity we should reflect it onto the world and others.

Do not project hatred and anger as it never does anyone any good. Especially yourself. Set yourself goals which you can achieve and work hard in order to be able to do what yo want to do, and remember that if you're having a bad day, you get a brand new chance to start again with tomorrow. 

"Exercise"-ing my right to Happiness

It's the fourth of August and I'm dripping head to toe from the rain. I can smell a combination of wet hair and sweat. I can feel the rubbery surface of the AstroTurf through my wet ankle socks and I'm about to put my beautiful spikes on.  And you know what? I'm feeling powerful as fuck. 

My names Bethan and I have a confession to make. I have a serious addiction to sprinting. Yes you heard right. Sprinting. 

For the whole twenty years of my life I have continuously battled with this sport of being either forced to go or wanting too but I've been to lazy so I've finally got hooked again and I knew it had happened from as soon as I stepped onto the track... I had a warm sensation which wasn't my thighs burning from the pain or thought of exercise, but that feeling that you get when you know you've done something good for yourself and I get it everytime. 

During my teenage years I was an avid sports player and at school I was involved in most of the teams. I was a netball player, playing centre or wing attack, I played hockey usually as a centre forward, I was a bowler on the cricket team, (funny that Ey? Haha), I did athletics of all kinds, cross country etc the list goes on but I loved sport and it always has been a passion of mine. Being part of a team made me feel so happy and loved and well my competitive side which needed to be fed was also satisfied... But my one true love was running for my hometown and county. 

And it has truly been my one true love, there's been times where it's the only reason why I get out of bed in the morning and also times where I've hit a rocky path with it such as training and not getting the goals which I aimed for. But I have truly worked hard at this sport in general and since moving home my love has rekindled for it, but in a different nature. 

I (now) am addicted to it as it genuinely makes me feel so happy. I've never been so proud of myself and to be honest it makes me a better person. It has given me goals to achieve, such as faster times, higher fitness levels and such high ambitions throughout the whole of my life, ensuring to me that I should continue with my education! 

Not only has it done all that, it has also given me the confidence to make changes with parts of my life which I didn't even know needed to be fixed until I realised how unhealthy they are. 

I am a happier and healthier person for running and I'm so proud of myself. 

I don't give myself enough credit but I can now juggle a social life, work, healthy eating and seeing my boyfriend and to me that's a big achievement considering how low I have been feeling. 

But all of that aside I do have a negative comment to write as if I didn't we all know that this wouldn't be true to my blog... 

But in the worlds of Rachel Ballinger.. DO YOU KNOW WHAT PISSES ME OFF? 

The fact that if I post anything at all to do with my progress, my exercising, my gym clothes, my food people seem to think it's annoying or have sly comments to make. Why is this necessary? We all are different and we all should be able to express our opinions but why so negatively! 

If I want to post a picture of my chicken salad which I have so exquisitely presented to make it more edible to me, I will because God damn it, it looks tasty and I'm proud that I've ate this, rather than beans on toast! 

I mean if a guy did exactly the same posts he'd be hot or inspirational but if a girl does it she's insane! But hey ho. My rant is over. 

So yeh that's it for today. And here's a recap, I'm happy, I'm exercising and have he most beautiful support network of friends and family. Also as a shoutout to sisterhood of silver! You have supported me yet you barely know me so thank you for all your wonderful comments and support without your lovely blog my life would be boring! 

So here's my final confessions. 

1. Do whatever makes you happy. What makes me happy is camomile and maple tea after a sprinting session, but that may be completely different to you. But even if it is it doesn't matter because to be absolutely normal would be an absolute tragedy. Which leads me to my second point...

2. Follow your own path, make it completely and truly individualistic and true to yourself. Whatever your goal is you can do it. Mine was to be happy and I will try to sustain it, because I know that I may have rough days. But this one small thing I do does make me feel so much better. 

3. Ignore people who will drag you down. You need to pull an arrow backwards so that it can propel towards its goal. Or in simple terms. People are bitches, and try to start trouble and cause crap for everyone. Just remember to do what's best for your own happiness and wellbeing. But don't hurt others in the process.