Do you think happiness is harder to achieve as our lives get more complicated?

I’m not sure how to word this. Bear with me.

There are lots of things that make me happy, but the clearest feeling of happiness comes with very basic assuagement *. A sandwich when I’m starving. A warm apartment when I’m freezing. A bubble bath when I’ve been in the woods all day.

Recently, I’ve been taking advantage of that fact. When I felt down last week, I went for a three-hour-walk before breakfast. I came home, took a shower, cherished my breakfast, and was in a good mood all day.

I can’t help but wonder whether the abundance of shelter, food, water, and other amenities in the western world may be causing people to feel unhappy for more “complicated” reasons.

What do you say?

* Did I use that correctly?