Navigating Toxic Positivity and Genuine Positivity

A term used in Psychology for people who have an optimistic outlook is "toxic positivity."  The idea is that people who embrace life in good spirits regardless of external events are burying or denying reality, or refusing to "process" serious problems.  A common misunderstanding among people learning about the Principles is that those who "get it" are relentlessly positive and dismissive of negative feelings.  The Principles describe how life works; they do not prescribe how we will work out our own lives.  People who see the Principles at work experience the full range of emotions and responses to life.  An understanding of the Principles allows us to know that states of mind are always changing as our thoughts change.  It keeps us from becoming frightened by our own negative feelings, or from trying to cling to positive feelings.  It leaves us at ease with all of life.

Support the show