The relationship between happiness, goodness, and health

In today’s society, especially in the United States, people become focused on the individual.  We believe that it is important for the individual to be good, be healthy, and be happy.  We have come to believe that all three are intertwined; however that is not always the case.  There are some ethical philosophies that connect the three just as there are ethical philosophies that do not. 

            The Yogic point of view is one in which there is a connection between happiness, health, and goodness.  “The yogic path is one that unlocks our unconsciously held beliefs, awakens our deepest ethics, and helps us live in harmony with ourselves, others, and the environment.”  The word yoga itself means union, which supports the belief that happiness, health, and goodness are one (Salazar, H. Why are you standing on my yoga mat?!)  The yogic view believes that everything we do as an individual affects us as whole community.  They believe that the community is an extension of the self, so in order to be happy we must be good to ourselves and to one another.  Furthermore we must first understand ourselves in order to understand our community and others.  For example, if my neighbor needed help shoveling her driveway because there was too much snow and she needed to visit her family, I would help because I would hope that one day, if I were in a similar situation, someone would help me.  I would also do this because I know that as my own person I am able to realize the goodness and happiness by completing this action.

            Utilitarianism is one philosophy where there is a disconnect between the three ideas of happiness, health, and being good.  “Utilitarianism states that each person is simply one more conscious being able to experience PAIN and PLEASURE.  As such, one should benefit oneself only if those acts benefit the whole of conscious life, where measurements of benefit include both short- and long-term consequences (Self Interest, p 1393).” In Utilitarianism goodness is the most important thing and personal health and happiness may need to be sacrificed in order to do the most good for the most people and animals.  For an extreme example, a person of a utilitarian belief may be in a situation where they are held hostage and told that he or she must kill their mother in order to save a large school full of children.  For the greatest good of the greatest amount of people, a person of the utilitarian belief would have to kill his or her mother to save all of the children.  Overall this would make all of the children happy, all of the children’s friends happy, and all of the children’s family happy.  People all over the world would probably be happy as well that all of the children were saved and that a terrorist attack was avoided.  However, on the other hand the person who had to kill their mother may now be facing mental health issues for having to commit that act.

            I personally believe that there is a disconnect between all three.  I don’t believe that it needs to be as extreme as in the case of the utilitarian, but that there is a disconnect.  I find that I often put my health at the bottom of the list.  I pull all nighters all the time, over work when I am tired, and push through sleepy eyes to accomplish homework and to socialize.  However, it is because I don’t sleep that I am able to find some happiness as well as good.  By not sleeping I am able to help my friends with their problems, producing good, as well as socialize and party, which personally makes me happy.  I am also able to accomplish schoolwork and hold a job to have money to spend, both of which give me a huge sense of pride and happiness.

            I believe that I need to work on creating more of a connection between happiness, goodness, and health.  I feel that if I continue to allow my health to slip, or be looked past for the other two aspects of happiness and goodness, then I won’t be able to accomplish the things that are currently making me happy.  In order to do this I believe that I need to start taking time for myself, which has always been very difficult for me.  I need to learn to tell people that I won’t be able to help them and that I am feeling overwhelmed with the amount of work I already have.  I also need to work on creating time to help people, almost like scheduling it, because I have been known to pause the work that I am doing at that moment to go and help them with whatever they need, putting a halt on my own work, causing me not to sleep. 

            I also need to learn how to express myself better rather than just acting like everything is going to be okay for me, and that I can handle everything by myself.  Part of happiness comes from the relationships that people develop and a key part of every relationship is communication.  The article on connecting states “We feel better just being around other people.  And we need close relationships in order to be happy (Connection and Happiness).”  The Relationships article states, “research shows that the quality of everyday interactions can make a break a relationship (Relationships).”  If communicating is important for relationships, and relationships are important for happiness, I need to start really working on that. 

            I also think that in order to better mesh the three I could focus on some of the yogic exercises to that I feel at peace with myself and my environment.  I believe that would help me connect health to happiness at a better level.  I think that I already do a lot of good.  I am always helping people and volunteering.  I think that in order to connect health, happiness, and goodness together more I need to focus on doing some more good for myself, like in the yogic view, in order to be a better ethical person in regards to happiness, health, and goodness.