Cosmopolitan India – August 2019

98 COSMOPOLITAN AUGUST 2019 FOR MORE GREAT STORIES, VISIT COSMO.IN

you, you, you

Maybe always looking at the bright side

isn’t the best way to go. Girls, this is an

eye-opener. By Faarah Mehta and Shereen

Halbawi of @SpiritualSouffle

Y

ou’ve heard it a million

times: ‘Think positively,

be grateful!’ It’s become

virtually impossible to

scroll down your Instagram feed

without seeing a barrage of posts with

messages like, ‘Inhale The Good,

Exhale The Bad’. It’s a #PositiveVibes

takeover!

Yet, when ‘life happens’, no amount

of positive thinking, laws of attraction,

and self-help books seem to work.

In fact, we find ourselves feeling

emptier than ever. So while positive

thinking is well-intentioned, it only

works when you allow for negative

thinking as well. Don’t believe us?

Studies at Harvard and Stanford

have actually proven that ignoring or

overexpressing unresolved emotions

is actually toxic. The next time you

feel terrible because you’ve lost

your job, boyfriend, or a loved one,

and anyone tells you to be grateful,

positive and strong, just ignore them

(in your head).

UAE-based Acceptance-

Commitment Therapist, Mindfulness

Consultant and the Founder of the

Free Spirit Project, Briar Jaques busts

positive thinking myths:

THE

RIGHT

WAY TO

THINK

POSITIVE

Ph

oto

gra

ph

s:^ A

NU

SH

KA

M

EN

ON