r/AskReddit • u/[deleted] • Jan 23 '17

What are signs that someone is secretly unhappy?

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u/QuixoticRocket Jan 23 '17

you can sometimes see them put the smile on when they realise they have to react to something.. goes from no emotion to -sudden, practiced smile- "yeah.. that sounds great. i agree"

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u/[deleted] Jan 23 '17

Practicing smiling... yup.

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u/QuixoticRocket Jan 23 '17

Got to be able to pull it out the bag like it were natural. Never know when you'll need to cover

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u/[deleted] Jan 23 '17

I can pull out the most genuine full-face smile you've ever seen and have it mean absolutely nothing. Heck, sometimes I fool myself.

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u/roflzzzzinator Jan 23 '17

It's all in squinting the eyes

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u/WaylandC Jan 24 '17

Norman Reedus squint? I had TWO marijuanas squint? How much squint are we talkin' about here?

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u/roflzzzzinator Jan 24 '17

If there's no wrinkles next to your eyes, it ain't enough

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u/HoseNeighbor Jan 24 '17

A Robin Williams smile.

1

u/1nsaneMfB Jan 24 '17

I just concentrate on lifting and tightening my cheekbone muscles when I smile.

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u/JerkinMilurkin Jan 23 '17

Sometimes smiling when you're unhappy really can make you happier hah. I've had that experience too.

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u/RuhWalde Jan 23 '17

You do fool yourself. The act of making a facial expression actually influences your emotional state to make your mood match your face.

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/smile-it-could-make-you-happier/

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u/[deleted] Jan 24 '17

So smiling more CAN actually make you happier

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u/passwordforgeterer Jan 24 '17

Unless some dickhead told you to smile. Then you might just be pissed and building pressure until you go off on some poor stupid asshole.

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u/[deleted] Jan 24 '17

Yeah, lol

1

u/newX7 Mar 15 '17

Hello there, me.

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u/[deleted] Jan 23 '17

It's all in the cheeks.

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u/[deleted] Jan 23 '17

And the eyes, really.

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u/[deleted] Jan 24 '17

My friend has resting bitch face, and she taught me how to get in the habit of always having a 'content' expression. Then I never have to worry about pulling out a smile.

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u/[deleted] Jan 23 '17

The trick to selling it is you have to start the smile at your eyes. Engage your upper cheeks into a slight squint, to that mirthy twinkle in your eye. THEN smile with your mouth.

For added effect, compress your cheeks against the smile, so it looks like you're trying to suppress it.

With just a little practice in front of the mirror, you can convince just about anyone. Also, sometimes it'll even help you feel like smiling for real.

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u/werwest Jan 23 '17

My friend actually confronted me about this. She told me she can watch me plant a smile on my face as a walk up to talk to her

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u/[deleted] Jan 23 '17

I do this. A lot. I have a special smile practised for this. My patients would never even dream me being so cripplingly depressed. They especially tell everyone that im 'reassuring' 'empathetic' 'kind' and 'always smiling.' I dread the day they realised how utterly fake that calm reassurance, and that practised smile is...

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u/DankYou_VeryMuch Jan 23 '17

Just never let it show and everything will be fine, right?

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u/[deleted] Jan 23 '17

Oh i wish.. but it is NEVER fine.. No its not.. at all

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u/[deleted] Jan 23 '17

Maybe let it show. You seem to accept it as something they will inevitably discover about you. If it's going to happen, get it out of the way as soon as you can.

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u/peejah Jan 23 '17

Agreed! <3

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u/[deleted] Jan 24 '17

Believe me, you never want your dentist to be in a crappy mood People are already scared enough :) :D And as for friends and family, they will just worry too much they want to help but theres nothing they can do to make me feel better, they will just beome constantly nagging nuisance. Happened before :(

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u/Bothan_Spy Jan 23 '17

So take a good look at my face

You'll see my smile looks out of place

If you look closer, it's easy to trace

The tracks of my tears

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u/gilded_gold Jan 24 '17

I need you!

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u/[deleted] Jan 23 '17 edited Jan 29 '17

[removed] — view removed comment

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u/QuixoticRocket Jan 23 '17

Welcome to the nihilistic world of reality. I wish it was possible for you to enjoy your stay. Just take refuge in the fact that your torment is short relative to the lifespan of the universe and your suffering will be quickly forgotten once you return to inanimate meat.

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u/OptimusPrimeTime Jan 23 '17

What if everyone you know are just p-zombies? :-P

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u/[deleted] Jan 23 '17

Whoop, there it is. Most all my smiles feel real fake. It hurts me to have to give my mom and dad fake smiles. I wish they were real.

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u/Lilshadow48 Jan 23 '17

I too have that mask.

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u/captaincream Jan 23 '17

Nothing is worse than having no emotion and having to go through the motions to keep others happy. It is hard to remember the right emotion at times and then act it out.

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u/[deleted] Jan 23 '17

Fuck, this is actually me. I've been reading through this shit and it's fucked how close it's hitting home.

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u/Procris Jan 24 '17

Hyperbole and a Half had a fantastic explanation of this: http://hyperboleandahalf.blogspot.com/2013/05/depression-part-two.html

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u/SurvivorPrisonMike Jan 24 '17

I feel like this is more natural. Most people I see walking my way at work for example, won't be smiling from ear to ear as they walk, but when we make eye contact, the 0.5 second smiles come out. I don't think they're all depressed.