Why Positive Focus Doesn't Work: Learning to Embrace Your Emotions

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Why Positive Focus Doesn't Work: Learning to Embrace Your Emotions

We've all heard the sayings before: "think positive," "look on the bright side," "just be happy." The message is always the same: focus on the good, ignore the bad. The problem is that this kind of advice falls short when it comes to actually feeling better. It's not that positivity is a bad thing, but when we use it as a way to suppress our emotions, we create more pain and suffering for ourselves in the long run. In this blog post, we'll explore why positive focus doesn't work and what we can do instead to truly feel better.

Accepting All Emotions

When we try to force ourselves to be positive all the time, we're essentially denying our true feelings. We're saying to ourselves, "I shouldn't feel this way," or "this feeling is bad." This resistance to our emotions is what causes pain and suffering. Instead of trying to suppress or avoid our feelings, we need to learn to accept them. When we accept our emotions, we're able to process them and move through them much more quickly and with less pain.

Guilt & Shame

Another problem with positive focus is that it's often accompanied by a sense of guilt or shame for feeling "negative" emotions. We may feel like we're failing if we're not happy and upbeat all the time. This kind of self-judgment only adds to our suffering. We need to release ourselves from the idea that we should always be positive and instead accept that it's okay to feel a range of emotions, both good and “bad”.

Holistic Healing

It's also important to recognise that our thoughts and emotions are deeply interconnected. When we have negative thoughts, we're much more likely to feel negative emotions. When we try to change our thoughts without addressing our emotions, we're only addressing half of the equation. To truly feel better, we need to work on both our thoughts and emotions simultaneously.

Mindfulness & Self Awareness

One way to do this is by practicing mindfulness. Mindfulness is the practice of paying attention to the present moment without judgment. When we practice mindfulness, we become more aware of our thoughts and emotions. We're able to observe them without getting caught up in them or trying to suppress them. This allows us to process our emotions in a more healthy and productive way.

Welcoming Your Emotions

Another helpful practice is to learn to embrace our emotions instead of resist them. This means allowing ourselves to feel our feelings fully and completely, without judgment or resistance. When we allow ourselves to feel our emotions, we're able to process them and move through them more quickly. This doesn't mean we have to wallow in our negative emotions; it simply means we need to acknowledge and accept them as a normal part of the human experience.

Finally..

In summary, positive focus alone is not enough to help us truly feel better. Instead, we need to learn to embrace our emotions and accept them as a normal and natural part of being human. By practicing mindfulness, releasing ourselves from judgment and guilt, and allowing ourselves to feel our feelings fully, we can move through our emotions in a healthy and productive way. So the next time you're feeling down, remember that it's okay to feel that way. You don't have to force yourself to be positive; just allow yourself to feel whatever comes up, and know that it's all part of the journey towards greater emotional well-being.

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