Out with minimizing, in with acknowledging
By Lili Romann We’ve all had a lot to deal with recently. Between the pandemic, a war-torn world, a democracy at odds with itself, a nearing recession and more, there are lots of reasons to feel scared and stressed. Aside from these large-scale issues, you may be working a hybrid schedule and having to find a balance between your work hours and picking up your kids. Or maybe your course load at school is kicking your butt and you are worried because your family is facing hardships. The list seems to be endless. The key to navigating a stressful, or often tumultuous sequence of events – this applies to everybody – is how you choose to confront your stress (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2021). Let’s introduce the topic of “toxic positivity,” an approach to emotion management that involves dismissing negative emotions and overgeneralizing positive ones. Toxic positivity is a belief that, no matter what, you should keep a positive mindset (Goodman, 2022). People following this concept appear positive when they are struggling. |
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