We humans are always filled with tension. We can find a new morning from the darkest clouds. From ancient days of philosophy to modern self-help gurus, the message is consistent: focus on the good, be grateful, and maintain a positive attitude. While life is full of toxicity and even helpful, it has evolved into a society. Positivity and relentlessness often harm pressure to maintain a happy, optimistic facade regardless of what one is truly experiencing. While our intentions may be good, some may think that we are manipulating them.

It manifests in phrases like, "Just look on the bright side," "Everything happens for a reason," or "You're so strong, you'll get through this." While these statements might be well-meaning, they dismiss the very real pain, grief, and struggle that are fundamental parts of the human experience. For someone grappling with a mental health condition, this can be particularly damaging.

Like always, telling people to be positive can make them feel bad. It makes them think it's their fault for being unhappy. They might hide how they feel, even from people who want to help.

To be positive in life is good. But it doesn't mean that you hurt yourself and stay positive. Let people realise their mistakes. Let go of what others said. Just be what you want to be.

Secondly, toxic positivity robs individuals of the opportunity for genuine emotional processing. Mental health recovery is not about magically becoming happy; it's about learning to understand, accept, and navigate the full spectrum of human emotions. Sometimes telling someone to be positive is very hard, even if they fail to express their feelings or emotions. If they don't want to hurt anyone, they hide the pain, which, if they don't express they feel guilty.

Now, in the fastest world, many positive affirmations and videos are always uploaded on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, and even people have started doing it on their own. Doing meditation, listening to music, and not being involved in other matters, doing meditation.

Staying positive doesn't mean you have to harm yourself. But in today's world, we have to leave some time. Nowadays, many crimes are going on, like rape, murder, suicide, assault, and so on. We can't change the mindset of others, but we can make ourselves safe from these people.

When people try to pretend to be happy, they might lose touch with their real feelings. This makes it hard to figure out what's wrong and fix it. They might feel numb, which might feel like a way to cope, but it's not a fulfilling way to live. It keeps them from truly healing and connecting with others.

The idea that we need to be super positive can be misleading. It makes people think recovery is a straight line from sad to happy. But real recovery is not that simple. It's messy and complicated.

When this reality clashes with the idealized image of constant happiness, it can be incredibly disheartening. A person may feel like a failure if they experience a bad day after a period of improvement, leading them to give up on their recovery efforts entirely. Expecting constant happiness can be too much. When it doesn't happen, it can be very painful.

Instead of forcing positivity, we can create a space where people feel safe to share their true feelings. Without judging them, we have to listen very carefully with kindness and try to understand them.

We can say, "It's okay to feel sad. I'm here for you." Instead of "Everything happens for a reason," we can acknowledge, "I can only imagine how difficult that is. I'm so sorry you're going through this.

Therapists know that it's not about just being happy. They help people understand their thoughts and feelings, and change the ones that are not helpful. This way, people can deal with their problems in a more real way.

For example, a type of therapy called CBT helps people notice when they're thinking negatively, and then work on changing those thoughts to more helpful ones. It's not about pretending everything is okay when it's not. It's about understanding and dealing with problems in a real way.

DBT therapy helps people deal with strong emotions in a healthy way. It's about learning to accept and tolerate difficult feelings instead of trying to ignore or hide them. This way, people can handle tough emotions without getting overwhelmed.

These therapy approaches recognize that genuine healing comes from facing reality, not from escaping it with a cheerful facade.

We want to believe that everything can be fixed with a positive mindset because the alternative—the acknowledgement of real, unfixable suffering—is deeply unsettling. We need to do better than just "stay positive" to support mental health.

Only then can we begin to dismantle the optimism trap and create a world where genuine healing is not only possible but celebrated.

So by taking small steps, making people understand the reality of the universe that no one will be spared by hurting someone. The universe will punish them. Just spread awareness of positivity and not toxicity. 

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