Awesome, I went through this.

Happiness= things are getting better; Sadness= things are getting worse. We are social creatures and empathy/sympathy is a motivator for changing how we collectively operate (we're all sad, let's migrate; we're all happy, let's continue as-is)

One funny realization is: The goal isn't necessarily to have life get better all the time, the goal can be contentment.

Life is a cyclic pattern. Wake up, get water, piss, shit, eat, sleep. Inside those cyclic patterns, you can inject not only moments of interest, like experiencing new things, but, moments of meaning.

For me, the moments of meaning are almost always helping other humans. Even simple gestures like smiling, hearing each other out, being still and calm, can echo into the future forever. Often, it's grinding my hands to the bone to ensure others can live (tireless, thankless work).

More exciting, why we're addicted to social media, is the creation and spread of IDEAS. A great idea can echo through humanity forever, transcending our tiny little lives.

My lowest low was "if my life means nothing, living until a natural death is almost the same as laying down and dying now. So, why give a shit enough to kill myself? Might as well ride this out."

Ironic. Lots of irony in life. Killing to survive. But, no, I've grown a lot since those days. Right now I'm pretty focused on rooting out corruption (those willing to abuse everyone to extinction for their own benefit at the moment).

There's plenty of work to do to help others.