positivepsychology

#MentalHealth #positivepsychology

Positive psychology is the scientific study of what makes life most worth living, focusing on both individual and societal well-being. It studies "positive subjective experience, positive individual traits, and positive institutions...it aims to improve quality of life." It is a field of study that has been growing steadily throughout the years as individuals and researchers look for common ground on better well-being.

Positive psychology began as a new domain of psychology in 1998 when Martin Seligman chose it as the theme for his term as president of the American Psychological Association. It is a reaction against past practices, which have tended to focus on mental illness and emphasized maladaptive behavior and negative thinking.

It builds on the humanistic movement by Abraham Maslow, Rollo May, James Bugental, and Carl Rogers, which encourages an emphasis on happiness, well-being, and positivity, thus creating the foundation for what is now known as positive psychology.

Gratitude improves interpersonal relationships at home and work. The connection between gratitude and happiness is multi-dimensional. Expressing gratitude not only to others but also to ourselves, induces positive emotions, primarily happiness. By producing feelings of pleasure and contentment, gratitude impacts on our overall health and wellbeing as well.

In a survey on gratitude in adult professionals, British psychologist and wellness expert Robert Holden found that 65 out of 100 people selected happiness over health, although they indicated that both were equally important for a good life.

Holden, in his study, suggested that the roots of many psychopathological conditions like depression, anxiety, and stress are unhappiness.

Simple practices like maintaining a gratitude journal, complimenting the self, or sending small tokens and thank you notes can make us feel a lot better and enhance our mood immediately.

Couple studies have also indicated that partners who expressed their thankfulness to each other often, could sustain their relationships with mutual trust, loyalty, and had long-lasting happy relationships.

You can refer to this:

resiliens.com/resilify/program/positive-psychology

#MentalHealth #positivepsychology

Body positivity refers to the assertion that all people deserve to have a positive body image, regardless of how society and popular culture view ideal shape, size, and appearance.

Some of the goals of the body positivity movement include:

-Challenging how society views the body

-Promoting the acceptance of all bodies

-Helping people build confidence and acceptance of their own bodies

-Addressing unrealistic body standards

Body positivity is not just about challenging how society views people based upon their physical size and shape, however. It also recognizes that judgments are often made based on race, gender, sexuality, and disability.

Body positivity also aims to help people understand how popular media messages contribute to the relationship that people have with their bodies, including how they feel about food, exercise, clothing, health, identity, and self-care.

By better understanding the effect that such influences have, the hope is that people can develop a healthier and more realistic relationship with their bodies.

Self-care can sometimes masquerade as a way to change or control your appearance, but self-care should focus on doing things that make you feel good about the body you have now. Show respect for your body. Eat healthy meals because it fuels your mind and body. Exercise because it helps you feel strong and energized, not because you're trying to change or control your body.

Wear and buy clothes for the body you have now—not for some planned future version of yourself. You might be holding on to your “thin clothes” because you plan to eventually lose weight, but such habits can make it hard to feel good about yourself today. Look for things that make you feel comfortable and good about how you look.

Purge your closet of clothes that don't fit your current physique. Your body may change in size and shape in the future, but that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t be able to look at feel good about yourself in the here and now.

Purge your social media feeds of accounts that don’t make you feel good about yourself. If you find yourself constantly comparing yourself to others, you’re less likely to feel good about yourself. Follow accounts that spark your interests and that leave you with positive feelings. On Instagram in particular, many accounts are focused only on portraying perfection or an idealized image of the body.

You can refer to this:

resiliens.com/resilify/program/positive-psychology

#MentalHealth #positivepsychology

Having a positive outlook on life is good for your mental well-being. The problem is that life isn't always positive. We all have painful emotions and experiences. Those emotions, while often unpleasant, need to be felt and dealt with openly and honestly to achieve acceptance and greater psychological health.

Toxic positivity takes positive thinking to an overgeneralized extreme. This attitude doesn't just stress the importance of optimism—it also minimizes and even denies any trace of human emotions not strictly happy or positive.

Toxic positivity can often be subtle. Learning to recognize the signs can help you better identify this type of behavior. Signs that you might be toxically positive include:

-Brushing off problems rather than facing them

-Hiding your true feelings behind feel-good quotes that seem socially acceptable

-Minimizing other people's feelings because they make you uncomfortable

-Shaming other people when they don't have a positive attitude

It's equally important to know when someone else may be acting toxically positive with you, potentially hurting your mental well-being. Signs that you may be on the receiving end of toxic positivity include:

-Feeling guilty about being sad, angry, or disappointed

-Hiding or disguising how you really feel

-Trying to be stoic or "get over" painful emotions

Sometimes, this type of behavior may serve as a coping mechanism to help people reduce or avoid stress. Rather than face a difficult emotion, people try to avoid it by putting a positive spin on a bad situation. While this might seem like an effective way of coping, denying or dismissing negative emotions can make it more difficult to actually cope effectively with such emotions.

You can refer to this:

resiliens.com/resilify/program/positive-psychology

#MentalHealth #positivepsychology

“PERMA” is an acronym for the five facets of well-being according to Seligman:

P – Positive Emotions: Even though seeking positive emotions alone is not a very effective way to boost your well-being, experiencing positive emotion is still an important factor. Part of well-being is enjoying yourself in the moment, i.e., experiencing positive emotions;

E – Engagement: Having a sense of engagement, in which we may lose track of time and become completely absorbed in something we enjoy and excel at, is an important piece of well-being. It’s hard to have a developed sense of well-being if you are not truly engaged in anything you do;

R – (Positive) Relationships: Humans are social creatures, and we rely on connections with others to truly flourish. Having deep, meaningful relationships with others is vital to our well-being;

M – Meaning: Even someone who is deliriously happy most of the time may not have a developed sense of well-being if they do not find meaning in their life. When we dedicate ourselves to a cause or recognize something bigger than ourselves, we experience a sense of meaning that there is simply no replacement for;

A – Accomplishment / Achievement: We all thrive when we are succeeding, achieving our goals, and bettering ourselves. Without a drive to accomplish and achieve, we are missing one of the puzzle pieces of authentic well-being.

This model gives us a comprehensive framework for understanding well-being as well as a foundation for improving well-being.

You can refer to this:

resiliens.com/resilify/program/positive-psychology

#MentalHealth #positivepsychology

Positive psychology’s main aim is to encourage people to discover and nurture their character strengths, rather than channeling their efforts into correcting shortcomings. Positive psychology highlights the need for one to shift their negative outlook to a more optimistic view in order to improve quality of life.

According to the theories of positive psychology, positivity is one of the main driving forces of life. Each of us routinely experiences both good and bad outcomes , but it’s often feels easier to focus on the negative outcomes, ignoring the ways we could harness the effect of good things to remedy the bad. For much of its history psychological research focused on psychological defects and anomalies that make some of us different from others, the diagnoses that explain negative actions and patterns of behavior. These diagnoses include the mental health challenges that many of us struggle with including anxiety and depression.

Research into positive psychology, however, focuses more on scientific explanations for positive thoughts and actions. Positive psychology does not deny the existence of flaws and foibles in our thoughts and behavior, but it argues that equal consideration should be given to people’s strengths and virtues.

Positive psychology is important because discovering what leads people to live more meaningful lives can translate to better strategies for managing mental illness, correcting negative behaviors, and increasing our happiness and productivity. For example, rather than analyzing the underlying traits associated with drug addiction, a positive psychologist might study the resilience of those who have managed a successful recovery and promote such resilience among future patients.

You can refer to this:

resiliens.com/resilify/program/positive-psychology

#MentalHealth #positivepsychology

Positive psychology is the scientific study of what makes life most worth living, focusing on both individual and societal well-being. It studies "positive subjective experience, positive individual traits, and positive institutions...it aims to improve quality of life." It is a field of study that has been growing steadily throughout the years as individuals and researchers look for common ground on better well-being.

Positive psychology is a branch of psychology focused on the character strengths and behaviors that allow individuals to build a life of meaning and purpose—to move beyond surviving to flourishing. Theorists and researchers in the field have sought to identify the elements of a good life. They have also proposed and tested practices for improving life satisfaction and well-being.

Positive psychology is one of the newest branches of psychology to emerge. This particular area of psychology focuses on how to help human beings prosper and lead healthy, happy lives. While many other branches of psychology tend to focus on dysfunction and abnormal behavior, positive psychology is centered on helping people become happier.

You can refer to this:

resiliens.com/resilify/program/positive-psychology

#MentalHealth #positivepsychology

1. Virtue of Wisdom and Knowledge

The more curious and creative we allow ourselves to become, the more we gain perspective and wisdom and will, in turn, love what we are learning. This is developing the virtue of wisdom and knowledge.

Strengths that accompany this virtue involve acquiring and using knowledge:

-Creativity (e.g. Albert Einstein’s creativity led him to acquire knowledge and wisdom about the universe)

-Curiosity

-Open-mindedness

-Love of Learning

-Perspective and Wisdom (Fun fact: many studies have found that adults’ self-ratings of perspective and wisdom do not depend on age, which contrasts the popular idea that our wisdom increases with age).

2. Virtue of Courage

The braver and more persistent we become, the more our integrity will increase because we will reach a state of feeling vital, and this results in being more courageous in character.

Strengths that accompany this virtue involve accomplishing goals in the face of things that oppose it:

-Bravery

-Persistence

-Integrity

-Vitality

3. Virtue of Humanity

There is a reason why Oprah Winfrey is seen as a symbol of virtue for humanitarians: on every show, she approaches her guests with respect, appreciation, and interest (social intelligence), she practices kindness through her charity work, and she shows her love to her friends and family.

Strengths that accompany this virtue include caring and befriending others:

-Love

-Kindness

-Social intelligence

4. Virtue of Justice

Mahatma Gandhi was the leader of the Indian independence movement in British-ruled India. He led India to independence and helped created movements for civil rights and freedom by being an active citizen in nonviolent disobedience. His work has been applied worldwide for its universality.

Strengths that accompany this virtue include those that build a healthy and stable community:

-Being an active citizen who is socially responsible, loyal, and a team member.

-Fairness

-Leadership

5. Virtue of Temperance

Being forgiving, merciful, humble, prudent, and in control of our behaviors and instincts prevents us from being arrogant, selfish, or any other trait that is excessive or unbalanced.

Strengths that are included in this virtue are those that protect against excess:

-Forgiveness and mercy

-Humility and modesty

-Prudence

-Self-Regulation and Self-control

6. Virtue of Transcendence

The Dalai Lama is a transcendent being who speaks openly why he never loses hope in humanity’s potential. He also appreciates nature in its perfection and lives according to what he believes is his intended purpose.

Strengths that accompany this virtue include those that forge connections to the larger universe and provide meaning:

-Appreciation of beauty and excellence

-Gratitude

-Hope

-Humor and playfulness

-Spirituality, or a sense of purpose

You can refer to this:

resiliens.com/resilify/program/positive-psychology

#MentalHealth #positivepsychology

Positive psychology is the scientific study of what makes life most worth living, focusing on both individual and societal well-being. It studies "positive subjective experience, positive individual traits, and positive institutions...it aims to improve quality of life." It is a field of study that has been growing steadily throughout the years as individuals and researchers look for common ground on better well-being.

Positive psychology began as a new domain of psychology in 1998 when Martin Seligman chose it as the theme for his term as president of the American Psychological Association. It is a reaction against past practices, which have tended to focus on mental illness and emphasized maladaptive behavior and negative thinking.

It builds on the humanistic movement by Abraham Maslow, Rollo May, James Bugental, and Carl Rogers, which encourages an emphasis on happiness, well-being, and positivity, thus creating the foundation for what is now known as positive psychology.

Gratitude improves interpersonal relationships at home and work. The connection between gratitude and happiness is multi-dimensional. Expressing gratitude not only to others but also to ourselves, induces positive emotions, primarily happiness. By producing feelings of pleasure and contentment, gratitude impacts on our overall health and wellbeing as well.

In a survey on gratitude in adult professionals, British psychologist and wellness expert Robert Holden found that 65 out of 100 people selected happiness over health, although they indicated that both were equally important for a good life. Holden, in his study, suggested that the roots of many psychopathological conditions like depression, anxiety, and stress are unhappiness.

Simple practices like maintaining a gratitude journal, complimenting the self, or sending small tokens and thank you notes can make us feel a lot better and enhance our mood immediately. Couple studies have also indicated that partners who expressed their thankfulness to each other often, could sustain their relationships with mutual trust, loyalty, and had long-lasting happy relationships.

You can refer to this:

resiliens.com/resilify/program/positive-psychology

#MentalHealth #positivepsychology

Body positivity refers to the assertion that all people deserve to have a positive body image, regardless of how society and popular culture view ideal shape, size, and appearance.

Some of the goals of the body positivity movement include:

-Challenging how society views the body

-Promoting the acceptance of all bodies

-Helping people build confidence and acceptance of their own bodies

-Addressing unrealistic body standards

Body positivity is not just about challenging how society views people based upon their physical size and shape, however. It also recognizes that judgments are often made based on race, gender, sexuality, and disability.

Body positivity also aims to help people understand how popular media messages contribute to the relationship that people have with their bodies, including how they feel about food, exercise, clothing, health, identity, and self-care.

By better understanding the effect that such influences have, the hope is that people can develop a healthier and more realistic relationship with their bodies.

Self-care can sometimes masquerade as a way to change or control your appearance, but self-care should focus on doing things that make you feel good about the body you have now. Show respect for your body. Eat healthy meals because it fuels your mind and body. Exercise because it helps you feel strong and energized, not because you're trying to change or control your body.

Wear and buy clothes for the body you have now—not for some planned future version of yourself. You might be holding on to your “thin clothes” because you plan to eventually lose weight, but such habits can make it hard to feel good about yourself today. Look for things that make you feel comfortable and good about how you look.

Purge your closet of clothes that don't fit your current physique. Your body may change in size and shape in the future, but that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t be able to look at feel good about yourself in the here and now.

Purge your social media feeds of accounts that don’t make you feel good about yourself. If you find yourself constantly comparing yourself to others, you’re less likely to feel good about yourself. Follow accounts that spark your interests and that leave you with positive feelings. On Instagram in particular, many accounts are focused only on portraying perfection or an idealized image of the body.

You can refer to this:

resiliens.com/resilify/program/positive-psychology

#MentalHealth #positivepsychology

Having a positive outlook on life is good for your mental well-being. The problem is that life isn't always positive. We all have painful emotions and experiences. Those emotions, while often unpleasant, need to be felt and dealt with openly and honestly to achieve acceptance and greater psychological health.

Toxic positivity takes positive thinking to an overgeneralized extreme. This attitude doesn't just stress the importance of optimism—it also minimizes and even denies any trace of human emotions not strictly happy or positive.

Toxic positivity can often be subtle. Learning to recognize the signs can help you better identify this type of behavior. Signs that you might be toxically positive include:

-Brushing off problems rather than facing them

-Hiding your true feelings behind feel-good quotes that seem socially acceptable

-Minimizing other people's feelings because they make you uncomfortable

-Shaming other people when they don't have a positive attitude

It's equally important to know when someone else may be acting toxically positive with you, potentially hurting your mental well-being. Signs that you may be on the receiving end of toxic positivity include:

-Feeling guilty about being sad, angry, or disappointed

-Hiding or disguising how you really feel

-Trying to be stoic or "get over" painful emotions

Sometimes, this type of behavior may serve as a coping mechanism to help people reduce or avoid stress. Rather than face a difficult emotion, people try to avoid it by putting a positive spin on a bad situation. While this might seem like an effective way of coping, denying or dismissing negative emotions can make it more difficult to actually cope effectively with such emotions.

You can refer to this:

resiliens.com/resilify/program/positive-psychology