Is making money a cure for depression? Do riches create happiness?

by BardofEly

Most people are looking for money but does wealth equal happiness in life? It certainly can make things a lot easier.

The Beatles
The Beatles had a hit entitled Money (That's what I want) , which simply explains why being rich is a very desirable way to be. John Lennon belts out: "The best things in life are free but you can keep 'em for the birds and bees..." because he wants money, and of course, in real life he got a tremendous amount of it!
The song states that although you cannot buy everything with money what it cannot purchase the singer has no use for anyway. This is a very materialistic way of looking at life but I can see a lot of sense in it all the same. I am sure you can see the logic in it too, and that is why the song became such a big hit. It was about something that the vast majority of people want and need.

US dollar bill

American money
A dollar in Public Domain
A dollar in Public Domain

Money (That's what I want)

A hit by The Beatles

Money (That's What I Want) was originally a 1959 hit single by Barrett Strong for the Tamla label, and was written by Tamla founder Berry Gordy along with Janie Bradford. It was to become the first hit record for Gordy's new label.

The Beatles had a massive hit with their cover of the song in 1963 and there are loads of other cover versions by all sorts of singers and bands.

Looking at the video I have included here I note that The Beatles are positioned on a checker-board of black and white squares. They were certainly playing a winning game when it came to becoming fabulously wealthy and famous!

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The Beatles - Money (that's what I want) with lyrics

A hit song by the Fab Four

St John's Wort, Prozac and cures for depression

Remedies for depressive illness

I see a lot of cures for depression and anxiety advertised but got to thinking that maybe the best way to make someone happy would be to give them a lot of money! It certainly can get rid of the stress factor in many people's lives.

You need money to pay for these cures and for your health. St John's Wort capsules or tablets are not free and neither is Prozac. Whether you subscribe to mainstream or alternative health treatments, or a combination of the two, you will usually find that you will need to pay unless you are covered in some way. Health comes at a cost and I mean physical and mental health!

Look at the lifespans of very wealthy people and they often live into their eighties or nineties but compare this with poor working class people and there is no comparison. This is not surprising because for a start the rich people get the best food and healthcare.

Paying bills

Enough for your needs

I know I feel a lot happier and confident when I know I have enough money for my needs than when I don't. It is obviously a source of stress and worry if you don't know how you will pay your bills, your rent and for you daily needs.

Ask yourself this simple question: am I happier when I have money or when I don't? I don't think many of you will be able to say you are happy without it!

Personally I don't really understand how people can say we don't need money. I can exist for a while without money but that is how it feels - existence and not living! I know I cannot get very far without money and whilst I may happen to know a lot about what wild foods can be foraged for it is not exactly an enjoyable diet a lot of the time.

Some people talk about bartering and exchange of services as the way ahead but this doesn't work very well in the real world. If I go to the shop and want to buy some food they will expect money. The same goes for my electricity, water, telephone and Internet, and I cannot pay for any of these services with anything but money. If I want to catch a bus, train, take a taxi or fly, again they all cost money.

Most people are in the same situation because they live in a system where the only way you can get what you desire and need is pay for it. There's nothing much you cannot pay for if you have the money so it is hardly surprising that so many people see making money as their goal in life.

Money pays for quality of life. There's no doubt about it! The quality of products and services we can buy are usually governed by how much we are prepared to pay. The cheap versions are never as good as the expensive ones, no matter what people may say.

People admire other people who are rich too. Even if it's only because they hope to somehow get a share of the wealth or something, the rich person is still a lot more attractive than someone who is poor and struggling

What does the future hold?

The rich are getting richer

The future

With the ongoing economic crisis people are talking about a collapse of the money system but I really cannot see how this could be possible. What is going to replace it?

There has been a lot of talk in conspiracy theory circles and elsewhere about suppressed "free energy" discoveries by inventors like Nikola Tesla, but whether such technologies exist or not I see no signs of those in control of the world making them available. It's more of the same. Sadly more wars and more destruction of the environment in the search for gas and oil, more control by the petrochemical industries and Big Pharma.

It is said that hemp is the solution to world problems. It can be used to make fuel, fibre, clothing and food. It is indeed true that this plant can supply so many of our needs.

However, the global corporations and the banks are all about money. They don't show any signs of changing. The very wealthy are in the process of becoming even more so whilst the poor are getting poorer. Is this wrong? Obviously, yes, it is but that doesn't change the world situation. People will have to do that somehow!

So what is the answer to all this? I don't think anyone really knows. We will just have to see how the future turns out and do what we can.

It is said that money is the root of all evil but perhaps money isn't the real problem? Perhaps how it is spent and how it is acquired is?

I know most of the problems I have encountered in my life have been ones that money could have resolved. My current needs and my future are all dependent on money.

Money is what I want, just like it said in the lyrics of that Beatles hit. And in the words of another famous song "Who wants to be a millionaire?" I do!

Copyright © 2012 Steve Andrews. All Rights Reserved

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Updated: 11/14/2012, BardofEly
 
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BardofEly on 11/14/2012

Brenda, we can each of us only speak for ourselves but I know that all of my problems in life are caused by lack of money to pay for fixing them. And when I have enough money I am a lot happier!

BrendaReeves on 11/14/2012

You brought up an interesting topic. Studies have been done on this and the results are that once a person's basic needs are met, money no longer makes us happy. My brother has a saying: If you aren't happy without money, you aren't going to be happy with it. I think this is so true. There are a lot of miserable rich people in the world.

Yes, money is a necessity and not having enough food, clothing and shelter can make a person's life hell. I used to be determined to get rich. I was striving for that until one day I realized that I don't have the emotional makeup for becoming rich. It came to me when I started thinking about the things that really make me happy: sunshine, animals, books, nature, hobbies, sitting for long periods in the coffee shop talking over coffee with a friend, working for myself. I also need a lot of down time to contemplate life. (Yes, I know I'm pretty boring.) Now, those things do cost some money, but not millions. It really comes down to knowing who you are. Since realizing that, I'm at peace with myself.

I guess the real question is how much money do you need to be happy.

BardofEly on 11/14/2012

Thank you! I am glad you do!

Mira on 11/14/2012

I like it that you included the Beatles song.:)))

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