The Mindful Survey: How Blue Are You?

Are you more susceptible to sadness in the day or at night?

How do you react to sadness?

Do you ever feel sad for no reason?

50% Say they rarely feel sad for no reason, and 39% feel inexplicable sadness somewhat often. 8% say they are never sad for no reason, while 3% are all the time.

Do you believe life is inherently sad?

What’s one thing you won’t do because it makes you too sad?

23% Say contemplating the fate of the world is too difficult, while 9% can’t read or watch the news, 10% can’t watch a sad movie, 5% struggle to be alone, and 3% can’t read sad books.

UNIQUE ANSWERS:

• “Visit others and pretend I’m okay.”
• “Think about why a relationship broke down.”
• “Visit graveyards.”
• “Dwell on death.”
• “Listen to ’80s music.”

What’s an important lesson you’ve learned from sadness?

• “It’s better to feel pain than nothing at all.”
• “Sadness isn’t permanent.”
• “Thankfulness is a mindset, not a feeling.”
• “If we are going to live life to the fullest, sadness is part of the deal.”
• “Not everyone responds the same way to sadness. Some people laugh when they’re sad, and that’s okay.”

When you’re in a sadness funk, what’s your go-to ritual to cheer up?

• “My favorite chocolate, a cup of Earl Grey tea, and a trashy escapist romance novel.”
• “Marijuana.”
• “Tea and Carly Simon.”
• “Chocolate, yin yoga, sex.”
• “Chick flick and pizza.”
• “Talk about it.”
• “Watch comedy clips.”
• “I listen to Sgt. Pepper’s start to finish.”
• “Play with my dog, journal, dance to fun music in my living room, create, spend time outside.”

What’s one thing that makes people sad that you just don’t care about?

• “Death. I work at a retirement facility and I experience death all the time.”
• “A kid not getting what he wants.”
• “Winter weather in northwestern Ontario.”
• “Death of people in entertainment.”
• “The end of Daylight Savings Time.”
• “Aging. People seem to want to stay young forever. I appreciate the depth and wisdom of older people.”
• “Rainy, cloudy, stormy weather— I love it.”
• “Longing for ‘the good old days.’”
• “TV shows being discontinued.”
• “I don’t care about sports teams losing. I couldn’t give a stuff!”

What’s one unconventional thing that makes you sad?

• “Old cars left to rust in a field.”
• “Kleenex TV ads.”
• “Misspelled words.”
• “National anthems make me cry.”
• “Oops, hormones!!”
• “Party small talk.”
• “Televised moments of joy.”
• “Egg nog.”

This article originally appeared in the February 2017 issue of Mindful magazine.

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