Call me crazy, or call me whatever you want but I don't choose happiness. I don't wake up every day and think I am happy because I choose to be. I honestly hate when people say I choose happiness or promote choosing happiness because you just don't. There is no article that is going to truly tell you 10 ways you can choose happiness, or some video that is going to teach you to be happy.

I understand when some people say they choose happiness––they mean that in situations or day to day activities they are not going to let others bother them. They might think they will choose happiness in those moments, and they won't let those negativities bother them. I agree with those people, and I think that is wonderful to try to do. Though, when you say you choose happiness it sounds like you are just picking out an emotion, a feeling, or a state of mind.

You can try to not let others affect you and can try to choose happiness in a situation or time, but as a state of mind you just can't choose to be happy all the time. Things are going to happen in your life, and they are going to hurt. We will have bad times, but we will have good times, too. I truly can't stand when someone tells me to choose happiness.

I can't stand it because life happened to me, and life happened hard. It happens to everyone, and that is okay––and I am not saying life does not happen to those people. I am saying that if depression was a choice, I would choose happiness. Confusing? Well if life would have been easier, life would have said "hey, we will cut these bad times out, make sure these things don't happen." Life happened though, and I did undergo many unwanted and unenjoyable events. Depression is something that came out of those. That statement stands for so much more than depression. It stands for any battle. If I could choose to be depressed I would not. I would say "no way, get out of here! Goodbye!" I can't though because depression is not a choice. So don't tell me to choose happiness when I can't. I can't tell my depression to go away and make happiness fill my body. You can't choose happiness when you are depressed, or really at all.

So truthfully, that is when I thought it through, and I thought if depression was a choice, I would choose happiness. Turn it around though. If happiness was a choice, I would choose depression. It makes no sense. Because depression is not a choice, anger is not a choice, happiness is not a damn choice. You feel your emotions when you feel them, and you should let your emotions out when you feel them. If you're depressed, angry, or sad you need to let it out and cope with it in positive ways, but don't hide yourself away trying to force yourself to feel a different emotion because someone told you, that you could choose emotions.

I mean it really just sounds nuts to think that. There are so many emotions you can feel such as confused, and terrified, horrified, scared, frustrated, ecstatic. While it would be wonderful if we could wake up every day and choose to feel an emotion, or choose to feel an emotion in a situation––you just can't. I mean imagine how wonderful that would be to just be happy because you chose to be, when really life has just rained on you.

You need to feel those emotions life gave you because if you choose to be happy, you hide that sadness. You put those feelings in a box, and eventually the box fills up with all of those hidden emotions that it explodes. You overflow and you can't take it anymore. Express how you feel, and don't be ashamed. Love yourself, and get help for emotions you can't learn to cope with correctly.

There is hope, and there is help. Your feelings are okay, and you are will be okay. Feel what you feel, and let your emotions out. Choose to try to see the good, and try to see the better things. Choose to try to block out the negativities in your life. Most of all choose to feel your emotions, and let them out positively.