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# Hedonic adaptation
Hedonic adaptation is the tendency for humans to return to a happiness set point after positive or negative changes in their life.
**Every human's happiness set point is different depending on their genetics.**
For example, unfortunately my brother naturally has a lower happiness set point than I do. This means even in the exact same objective situation, I tend to naturally be happier than he is. Another example is in winning the lottery which most think will make their lives magically better. But studies show a few months after winning the lottery we go back to our happiness set point. Similarly, if we become crippled we generally return to our happiness set point after a few months as well.
While there are some events that can influence our happiness permanently over a long period of time like having kids or losing a child, most events don't permanently influence our happiness over the long run.
Luckily there is a way to influence our happiness set point to a certain extent.
[[Ways to fight against hedonic adaptation]].
N: [[Evolution MOC]]
S: [[Hedonic treadmill]]
W: [[Negativity dominance]]
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