Trying too hard to be happy

Deflated smiley face balloon.

By Amanda Nunez, Layout Editor
April 26, 2021

Happiness cannot be owned, worn, or consumed. Many people tend to forget that happiness doesn’t come because of obtaining something we didn’t already have.

Instead, it’s about acknowledging what we do have. You must let go of the expectations you’ve set your life to look like and just celebrate it for everything that it already is. To be truly happy, you need to find that happiness within yourself first.

Freshman Monica Smith says she tries to find happiness in the things around her, in her friends and family, but that she’s not sure if she’ll ever find it within herself.

Freshman Natalie Rodriguez says, “Everyone just wants happiness, but they tend to forget that you can’t have a rainbow without a little rain.”

According to junior Kyara Bermudez happiness means to “…let go of the comparisons you’ve made of yourselves from the versions of the people you see online.”

Social media is another enemy to a person’s happiness because we watch as celebrities post their lives online, we’re constantly comparing ourselves to them.

An anonymous male junior says, “I think social media is the worst, yet I spend hours and hours scrolling through Instagram, hating on my body because I look nothing like the rest of the males on there.”

Avery Smith, a sophomore, agrees: “Social media is the biggest adversary females have to face in their lives, especially young teens with low self-esteem, because what celebrities project is so unrealistic.”

Many teens find themselves faking their happiness rather than expressing how they truly feel due to the fear of being judged by others. It’s usually easier to fake happiness rather than sit down and face the root of your sadness.

“On most days when I’m feeling extremely down or my mood isn’t at an all time high, I fake being happy, so I don’t bother my friends or my family with my issues,” said junior Jam Torres, “but trying so hard to be happy only makes me feel worse.”

If you live in the constant fear of waiting for the storm to arrive and wash away everything you knew, leaving you a wreck—then you’ll never have enough time to enjoy the sunshine or even the rainbow that occurs after the storm passes.

However, sophomore Sarah Rodriguez says, “I usually expect the worst out of every situation. I don’t let myself set high expectations, so it doesn’t hurt as much when they’re broken.”

5 tips to add to your routine that may help your mood.