To live your life to the fullest, you should always look for ways to stay positive, despite all of life’s crazy surprises. Positivity is a fantastic drug. Research shows that happy thoughts can make you more resilient to sickness and other adverse life events. But it can be tough to stay positive when you’re not feeling well, and even more so when being unwell has completely upended your life.
How to Stay Positive, Even Through an Illness?
Sadly, many people experience sadness, anxiety, depression, stress, and other negative emotions when sick. This can make recovering even more difficult. Read on if you need a pick-me-up to help navigate a tricky health crisis. Here are four ways to stay positive, even through an illness.
1. Stay Positive by Letting Yourself Experience Emotions
It’s a common misconception that those who stay positive never let themselves feel bad. In reality, for genuine positivity to take root, you must first process the emotions you feel. It sounds counter-productive, but it’s how it works. When you don’t acknowledge your emotions, you repress them, exacerbating them. Studies show that it strengthens them as they influence you in subconscious ways. It’s like being weighed down by negativity!
That’s why the best way to stay positive through an illness is to permit yourself to feel the natural and valid emotions that come with being sick. To do this, you can:
a. Name Your Emotions
The emotions you feel when you’re sick are bound to be complex. Try to name them out loud or describe them. This can help your brain process these feelings and help to jog your awareness of how these emotions impact you.
b. Have a Good Cry
There’s no shame in having a good cry when you need it. Being sick can be overwhelming, especially when the future feels uncertain. Studies have shown that crying can sometimes help relieve negative emotions and uplift your mood. More importantly, it’s a release of your feelings that comes from allowing yourself to express your negative emotions.
c. Let Yourself Be Sick of Being Sick
It’s normal to get sick of being sick, especially if your illness requires a lot of treatment or a prolonged recovery period. You might feel guilty for tired of feeling this way, but don’t be ashamed! Your body is not working as it should, and it’s normal to get tired of dealing with that. This is a normal, healthy emotion to feel and shouldn’t be excluded so that you can stay positive. Toxic, unrealistic positivity is not genuine positivity at all!
d. Stay Positive by Writing in a Journal
If you have trouble letting yourself feel your emotions, it can help to write them down. Use a journal, word document, notes application, or anything to express all your thoughts. Do not, at any point, pause to judge yourself for what you feel. Write whatever pops into your head and allow yourself to release your emotions through the medium of the written word.
2. Stay Positive by Accepting the Help You Need
When you’re sick, do you try to do everything yourself? Do you tell people not to help you and tend to push yourself to perform daily tasks that leave you exhausted and even sicker? This is a common situation for people who are ill, and it may happen because:
You worry about being a burden to the people around you, so …
