Word Search: Tired of toxic positivity? Try tragic optimism instead

Don’t complain. Be grateful. Others have it far worse than you. Look on the bright side. Good vibes only.

When you’re going through a tough time, nothing can pull you down faster than unrelenting optimism, that psychologists are now calling “toxic positivity”.

Click start to play today’s Word Search, where “optimism” is one of the words you can spot.

Toxic positivity is the assumption that even when a person is going through an emotional ordeal or a difficult situation, they should only have a positive mindset. But while staying upbeat and expressing gratitude are excellent habits to have, persistent positivity can paint negative emotions as a failure or a kind of weakness.

An April 2008 study published in the Journal of Personality found that constant reminders on how good we have it, in the middle of hardship and struggle, don’t actually make our sadness, anxiety, or fears go away. In fact, quashing negative emotions can make us feel even worse.

A February 1997 study in the US-based Journal of Abnormal Psychology found that suppressing emotions had both a physiological and psychological impact. Researchers asked 180 women to watch sad, neutral and amusing films – those who suppressed their emotions showed increased sympathetic activation in their cardiovascular system. In simple terms, when they tried to suppress their emotions, they experienced the same reactions they would have had if they were furious or afraid – increased heart rate and vigilance, and decreased blood flow to the skin (leading to cold hands and feet) and gastrointestinal system. Failing to express their emotions had a detrimental effect on their bodies, and caused psychological stress.

So, what’s the solution? We can’t all be bleak and miserable every time we struggle with something in our lives.

The answer may lie in another mindset approach that has a more realistic framing: tragic optimism. First defined by Austrian psychologist Victor Frankl in 1985, tragic optimism posits that there is hope and meaning in life, while also acknowledging the existence of loss, pain and suffering. There is space to experience both the good and the bad, and we can learn and grow from each.

Tragic optimism takes a bad situation and reframes it into an opportunity to overcome a challenge. A September 2020 study published by the online journal PsyArXiv Preprints measured changes in wellbeing among residents in the UK during the COVID-19 pandemic, and found that those who showed tragic optimism coped more effectively with the trauma of the pandemic.

Perhaps it was because of a key foundation of the philosophy – the ability to find meaning and purpose amid setbacks. The study also found that tragic optimists looked to their relationships with their friends and family to find meaning – a deeper process than short-term fixes, like retail therapy or video games.

Are you a tragic optimist? Play today’s Word Search and let us know at games@gulfnews.com.