The idea that people should keep a happy attitude no matter how serious or challenging their circumstances are is known as toxic positivity. While having an optimistic outlook and practicing positive thinking have many advantages, poisonous positivity rejects all unpleasant feelings in favor of a cheery and frequently deceptively optimistic front.

A positive outlook on life is good for keeping one’s mental health. The problem is that not everything in life is positive. Each of us has gone through and felt unpleasant feelings. Even though these emotions are frequently unpleasant, they must be felt, dealt with, and accepted in order to develop psychological wellness.

This mindset minimizes and even ignores any evidence of human emotions, in addition to emphasizing the value of optimism.

The Dangers of Toxic Positivity

A toxic amount of positivism might injure those who are going through difficult situations. When confronted with poisonous optimism, individuals discover that they are not only unable to express their true human emotions but also do not receive unwavering support.

It humiliates:

Feelings of shame might result from receiving poisonous affirmation. People are informed that their feelings are unacceptable. Someone in pain has to be aware that their feelings are real and that they can receive comfort and affection from their friends and family.

It makes you feel guilty:

Being toxically positive might make you feel guilty. It conveys the idea that you should be doing something wrong if you can’t keep a good attitude in the midst of catastrophe.

It stays away from real human emotion:

Using toxic positivity as a defense technique. It enables individuals to avoid uncomfortable emotional circumstances by engaging in this kind of behavior. Sometimes we internalize these same concepts and use them against ourselves. When we experience challenging emotions, we then minimize, reject, and deny them.

It stops growth:

We can avoid feeling things that might be hurtful by practicing toxic positivity. But doing so prevents us from having to deal with difficult emotions, which can ultimately promote development and greater understanding.

Being advised to “look on the bright side” when a person is dealing with issues like money problems, a job loss, illness, or the death of a loved one can sound plain cruel.

Even some believe that gaslighting is a form of unhealthy optimism. This is because it fabricates a false reality, frequently leading you to doubt your thoughts and feelings.

Toxic positivity can occasionally even be violent. It could be used by an abusive person to minimize, disregard, and invalidate the feelings and experiences of another person. They might even use it to reduce the gravity of their own abusive behavior.

Toxic Positive Indications

Toxic positivity is frequently imperceptible. You can more easily identify this kind of behavior if you learn to spot the warning indicators.

These are some indicators that you might be toxically positive:

• ignoring issues rather than dealing with them
• Hiding your genuine sentiments beneath moralizing sayings that pass for acceptable in society
• minimizing the sentiments of others because you find them uncomfortable
• Condemning other individuals for their negative attitudes

It’s equally crucial to recognize when someone is interacting with you in a poisonous way and could be endangering your mental health. There are several indicators that you can be the target of toxic optimism.

• guilt over being depressed, enraged, or disappointed
• Hiding or masking your true feelings
• Striving to “get over” or remain calm in the face of negative emotions

How to stay away from toxic optimism

There are steps you may do to cultivate a healthier, more helpful mindset if you can identify toxically positive behaviors in yourself.

• Remember, “It’s okay to not be okay.
• “Control your bad feelings, but don’t try to ignore them.
• Pay attention to what other people are saying and encourage them.

How to Manage Toxic Positivity

If a person you know frequently makes comments that aren’t encouraging or emotionally validating in response to your unpleasant sentiments, here are some strategies for handling toxic positivity:

• Regard your emotions honestly
• Never be scared to confront someone who is being toxically positive.
• Know that it’s acceptable to experience multiple emotions.
• Find the purpose in what you are going through.
• Observe your feelings.
• Put words to how you feel.

Permit yourself to experience your emotions. These emotions are genuine, legitimate, and significant. Additionally, they can inform you and assist you in recognizing aspects of a situation that require your active effort to improve.

This does not imply that you must act on each and every emotion you have. Prior to acting, it can be beneficial to sit with your emotions, give yourself some time and space to analyze the situation, and accept your sentiments.