The Pollyanna PROBLEM

Looking too much on the bright side of life can have a decidedly poor outlook for your mental health...

Be positive! It's a phrase that has become a mantra to so many people in recent years-s something everyone is striving for. After all, who doesn't want to see their glass as half full, the silver linings around the rain clouds and the good in every situation?

But, like Pollyanna in the novel, could being blindly optimistic lead to disappointment? Is always looking on the bright side better for us? Or can there be too much of a good thing? Are we all too busy telling ourselves and each other - to keep our chin up and look for the rainbows in life, to actually acknowledge how we're really feeling and even deal with those feelings effectively? In some cases, too much positivity can be bad for us. Read on to find out when it's OK to feel unhappy...

Turning toxic

Being positive is usually seen as an important thing, isn't it? In a modern world that is becoming increasingly aware of mental health and its importance to our overall wellbeing, we are more conscious of our feelings than ever and how important it is to feel 'good'. Maybe this explains the relatively recent focus - particularly on social media - on 'being positive'. Of course, being positive isn't a bad thing - if it's genuine. If it's not genuine, and is being forced, that's where the problem comes in.

Plain old positivity tips into toxic positivity when you start denying your real emotions, trying to convince yourself that you're feeling something you aren't and becoming fixated on a state of mind that isn't real.