Do you think that money CAN buy happiness?

Money can’t buy happiness, but it can solve a lot of problems that make you sad, and that’s a good start. However, if you have mental health issues, you need to address them.

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You can get yourself a therapist for a good chunk of change! :sweat_smile:

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Money can enhance who you really are. That’s why you see people who finally get big money turn into bigger A-Holes.

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I think mental health goes deeper, For example, look at Anthony Bourdain and Robin Williams, Both were rich and both committed suicide for whatever reason.

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I read one of his books and man he had DEEP issues even then. Alcohol and drugs definitely didn’t help him.

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Yes, I can vouch for the Cambodian people, having lived there, they are wonderful people.

Yes, the hospitals are something extreme! I once went to the International hospital and they gave me a little bottle of antibiotics for $400, the place was like the Ritz!
On another occasion I was packed into an ‘ordinary hospital’, before I knew what was happening. It was like some kind of prison, cost me $7000 for a two month stay, god knows what the International would have cost! Moral of story money can buy you insurance :joy:

Money can’t buy you happiness but it can sometimes buy you fun.

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In your case, it can also buy you your LIFE! :joy:

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Ah but it was excess money that got be into chronic alcoholism that caused me to finish up in hospital. I was very wealthy but my life spiralled out of control with vast alcohol consumption. When I got back to England I finished up virtually penniless and in a wheelchair!
I have got my life back together and haven’t touched alcohol for five years, never will.
I would not wish alcoholism on anyone!

So money can sometimes take you the wrong way, my own fault, of course.

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I’ve thought about this before with a lot of rockstars and famous people, seems like those that use alcohol or drugs as vices are far more likely to wind up in big trouble or overdosing because they don’t have any limit on money and connections for getting those things.
Glad to hear you’re doing better now though!

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Good to hear!!! I’ve heard it’s really difficult to get off it so I’m glad you’re out of that! Was ending up in the hospital the turning point for you?

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Yes - it is really difficult. I’ve met Heroin/alcoholics who say that giving up Heroin is like an easy walk in the park compared to alcohol.
I was a functioning alcoholic for many years, then it just caught up with me, to the point where I was drinking more than two bottles of Vodka a day just to remain straight. I wasn’t even getting drunk - just staving off the shakes and withdraw.
So much for doctors, they didn’t even know what was wrong with me when I finished up in hospital after a seizure, they just pumped me with Fentanyl.
I realized what was the matter and just had to stop - rehab.
It’s quite extraordinary that my liver is intact :+1: :wink:

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Hey @Johnny1974 . That’s an amazing journey you’ve made. I think there by the grace of god go all of us, as far as addictions are concerned. The strength it must have taken to put all of that behind you is hard to imagine. I get how quitting booze would be more difficult than heroin, cos in society alcohol is so socially acceptable.

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OK, so here’s what I think about money (loosely connected to the thread topic!) I like money as much as anyone else, but in a perfect society I don’t think anyone should be allowed to have more than $20million of individual wealth. That is enough for you, your children and your grandchildren to live in comfort and luxury for the duration of their lives. I think it is somewhat vulgar and obscene to have billions of $ in a world where people live on a dollar a day. I know this is just a fantasy and there is no way this could ever happen. Yes, some ultra-rich people are philanthropists and give some of it away, but I reckon they’re in a minority.

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It can definitely give you plenty of options. But you need to have calmness within you to be a happy person. I have seen people being happy in worse financial situations than me. Also, it depends on where you are spending that money.

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In the same way that money has brought some people happiness, it has also contributed to the downfall of many others

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Money can’t buy happiness, but money can definitely buy the means to happiness. Like c’mon you can’t keep your family or yourself happy and healthy if you do not have the money to maintain them.

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Although money can be used to purchase valuable items, it cannot be used to purchase inner peace. Happiness should come from within; therefore, we should not depend on others to make us happy. We should not be excessively materialistic; instead, we should have just enough money to cover our daily needs.

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I 100% agree, if you look at the history of people who came into big money either through a job, owning a business, winning the lottery, or entertainment like movie stars, musicians, and, athletes, you can argue that money has been a curse that has brought a lot of stress, drama, and sadness in people’s lives.

Money can bring happiness to many people, but it can also bring sadness to others.

In fact, money is the root of 90% of all evilness, because people will rob, steal, and murder for it, and how many lives are ruined as a result.

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In short, my observation is that Money is one of the the best tools to achieve whatever you want to do, if happiness is what you are looking for then that’s what it will get you but if you are not looking for happiness then it will be detrimental.

In my case for example, I’ve been in many cases (like millions of persons) where I need help with something and I can’t access said help because of lack of money. Back in the day I had an injury in my back-shoulder and neck, as a result it would cause me great deal of pain and what it’s worse I’d cause me some mild to moderate migraines, they weren’t the worst case of migraines but boy did they interfere with my quality of life and thus my happiness. There were days where I couldn’t sleep or eat or work well. The solution was simple, I had to see an specialist in my case a physiotherapist but I couldn’t afford it at times since it is not covered by my insurance. In another example, me and my SO (again like millions of persons) would be in a situation where there was so much tension between us and couldn’t handle things by ourselves so we needed couples therapy with a professional and again at times we couldn’t afford it. These days it is not as dire as back then, but many parents need help with their kids and education, who doesn’t want to hire some of the best tutors for their kids? Fortunately these days there are many resources online at no cost, I’d normally use this algebra 1 tutor for my daughter at no extra cost. I could go on and on with examples but I think we all have been in a situation where the health and/or life quality of ourselves and/or people we care about could have been improved if money wasn’t a constraint. Of course that doesn’t mean that if you wear a $300 t-shirt with some $300 pants and $500 shoes you’ll be instantly happy as a clam, like I said, happiness must be your goal so money can help you, materialistic external things rarely help in achieving happiness whereas having your basic needs met, having a home (modest one), food (nutritious), access to health services do help but cost money.

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It’s interesting to see everyone’s response on this subject, especially since a lot of us have experienced the highs and lows of wealth and people here come from different backgrounds. Seems like most people think it goes both ways:

You need money to afford healthcare, take care of your family, live comfortably, have peace of mind, reduce stress, get from point A to point B, etc. Without money, you’re bound to be uncomfortable and stressed.

Money cannot buy inner peace, love, bring back lost loved ones, or restore health in certain circumstances. Surprisingly enough, these are things that people would spend the most money on if it were an option, but even the rich can’t control these things.

Seems like a lot of people also see evil in money, which makes sense because money does motivate people to commit crimes or lead people into addiction and other vices. Many celebrities have fallen down that rabbit hole. They might had gone on to live normal lives and still be here if they’d never experienced fame/riches.

At the end of the day, I think having inner peace with those priceless things plus enough money to live a comfortable life is the best combination. Many people probably feel that they are lacking too much of one or the other.

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