Many people don’t associate happiness and survival. Responsibility, evaluation, action, confidence—these all seem like a natural fit for a true survival outlook. But happiness?
We wouldn’t imagine someone down in the trenches of survival being happy; rather, we would expect them to be tough or serious. is is because many people tend to think about happiness as just laughter or smiling. But happiness can also be defined as holding onto hope and finding moments of joy even when the struggle becomes dark. The use of the word “happiness” is, in many ways, symbolic for positivity and hope.
People derive happiness in their survival journeys in different ways. Particularly in extreme or isolated survival situations, maintaining positivity becomes a matter of appreciating the beauty of your surroundings. Survivors stuck in Arctic ice, on life rafts in the Pacific, or in the middle of the jungle all report being awestruck by nature. Noticing this beauty pulled them out of a narrow—and potentially enervating—focus on their suffering.
In other scenarios, especially when there is more than one person in the survival situation, happiness comes from community. Being able to positively relate to the people around you who can empathize with your situation is key. The opposite is also true. When communication and respect break down, survival becomes infinitely more difficult.
Although hope is critical, it isn’t enough. You must act. And when you do, happiness is the result.
If you think about your favorite epic survival story, it probably features a survivor who relied on positive thinking. Someone who believed they would make it and appreciated their life even when ugliness was all around them. Happiness for them meant appreciation, hope, living in the moment, gratitude—anything that broke the cycle of negative thinking and got them focused on the positive outcome of survival.