We are human and we feel. We all experience hardships, achievements, losses, gains, passion, and loss of purpose. Sometimes, the hardest part in life happenings is figuring out how to respond to them. In my opinion, emotions and feelings never lie. What you do with them, however, is the more difficult and more important part of it. Practicing healthy emotional thinking (some may say this is an oxymoron) is critical in maintaining your own mental health and wellness. Think of emotional thinking as a work out; it takes practice and work, but over time it will get easier and you can take on harder things.
It is normal and healthy to allow yourself to feel and respond to ups and downs, whether they are caused by large events or simply come in waves. I think that in this day and age, we are so fearful of sadness that we do whatever we can to avoid this. This is logical, isn't it? I do not think so. Sometimes, sadness comes. It can wash over you when you are in the shower, driving your car, or eating mac and cheese. You may be reminded of something in the past that makes you feel sad for a moment. I say we should embrace these feelings. Let ourselves sink, if only for a moment, because it allows us to overcome it in a healthy way and climb back up and feel a surge of happiness after. Instead of jumping into social media or Netflix the moment you feel down, just think. Don't hide yourself away only to avoid it. You're pushing away happiness when you do this. When we keep ourselves emotionally stagnant, nothing is profound.
We all get moody and upset sometimes, and it may even be absurd. When you catch yourself being extremely upset by something trivial, and you acknowledge it, then you can become stronger and more whole. Emotional outbursts without self reflection often do far more damage to yourself and others than is necessary.
We don't need to be perfect golden humans at every second of every day. We can ask for help, listen to sad music, and just be alone for a while without becoming lesser in any way. We don't have to provide happiness for everyone around us all the time. It is not our job to go around and make sure everyone is happy when we, ourselves, are not. We can take some time to think about what makes us happy and then seek it out. We can work together to lift each other up. We can share all the glory of our world, together, and talk about the things that bring us down. Empathy can become a more powerful tool over time as we make sense of our universe, our minds, and our relationships. We are far from perfect, but we can always try for better.
