Toxic positivity

Brush it off! Only positive vibes! Look on the bright side!

Sounds familiar?

It reminds me of the days when suddenly I feel so fed up with social media because of the rising toxic positivity I see on many platforms, including sometimes on LinkedIn, a platform I love.

While a positive mindset and attitude are extremely powerful, when I see someone cherishing a company and the ‘family’ they are part of after a layoff without giving any room to acknowledge the cocktail of emotions experienced during a layoff ranging from anger, frustration to sadness and disbelief, I feel a sense of tiredness.

Interestingly enough, it seems that I’m not alone with that feeling, and more and more professionals I’m speaking to lately mention that, apart from social media, they are increasingly struggling with toxic positivity at their workplace too.

So, what is toxic positivity all about?

A topic some love and others seem to hate.

Toxic positivity is the belief that no matter how difficult a situation is, you have to maintain a positive mindset at all times and disregard all negative emotions. This can lead to people suppressing their emotions, which can be extremely draining and sometimes even make people feel guilty and ashamed when experiencing dire emotions.

Some signs of toxic positivity are:

• Feeling drained and exhausted
• Feeling ashamed and guilty when feeling sad or angry
• Suppressing painful emotions
• Ignoring your problems
• Dismissing others difficult feelings
• Limiting your response to hard situations to rephrasing positive quotes

So, what can you do to respond to toxic positivity?

• Remind yourself that positive comments such as ‘Brush it off’ are well-intended
• Remind yourself that it is okay to feel a range of different emotions, that it is ‘okay not to be okay’ all the time.
• Step back, breathe, and take some time to acknowledge your emotions
• Give yourself space to release your emotions. Some suggestions for releasing emotions can be to connect with nature by going for a walk or writing down your emotions.
• Be courageous and respond to people that are rephrasing positive quotes, let them know what you are feeling, and explain that you want to find the best way forward and would appreciate their input and ideas.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this, put your brain on fire!