I don't mean to give up on life in general. I give you an example of the monkey jar trap. I quote "The hunter would take a pot with a wide bottom and narrow opening and bury the pot in the ground to where the opening of the jar was just above the ground. In the jar the hunter would place a piece of fruit or nuts, and curiosity or hunger would attract the monkey to reach inside. By consequence, the monkey's hand stucks inside due to the narrow opening." The monkey faces two option : keeping his hands inside the jar and captured by the hunter, or give up on the fruit to escape from the jar. But in general the monkey keep his hands inside the jar. So by that I mean you give up on something or even gives sacrifices to keep you peace of mind or your mental health. So like op said he want to be happy, I like to tell him not to pursuit happiness, it's okay to be neutral or sad, but in fact you won't be always sad. I repeat that we are in the same boat. Some days are terrible, yet I have nothing to do I just smile and imagine like I m hugging and saying you will be okay.