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Comment by kgilpin | Hacker News Reader

The article states "People seem to get better at savoring the moment as they age". As a father of four, I'd like to point out that young children do this constantly! It seems that it's an ability that we have, and then lose, and then (hopefully) regain.

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I'd bet it's inversely proportional to the number of things we have available to worry about. Kids and older people don't typically have (as) much to worry about as middle age people who are raising kids, caring for elders, paying debts, and trying to hold down jobs.

To me it also has to do with some evolving capacity. As a kid there's not so much things you can plan. You enjoy what you can. As an adult you start foreseeing (or at least believe you should try to). As you get older, this goes away (for many reasons) and you gradually go back to finding pleasure right there.

    > I'd bet it's inversely proportional to the number of things we have available to worry about.

When I was financially free I almost went crazy from lack of stress.

This is actually one of the roots of PTSD. A switch is turned on that can't be turned off, and it puts you in the strange situation of wishing you were back in the stressful situations of combat.

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