that you do indeed have mental health, that you do have healthy functioning. You must realize that even if you don’t feel it at the moment, it’s still there, waiting for your attention.
Imagine that you have a special pair of orange socks that you have lost but would like to wear. If you are certain that you own them, and you know what they look like, and you really want to find them, then you are a thousand times more likely to find them than if you don’t even know that you own them! How would you ever find something if you didn’t even know what you were looking for – or for that matter that there was even anything to look for?
If you begin actively to search out, explore, and yearn for your own inner sanity, you will find what you are looking for. As your understanding and faith in the existence of your healthy functioning increases you will discover a better feeling surfacing. As this part of you that is never depressed is recognized and acknowledged, it will begin to conquer your unhappiness in the same way that sunlight will bring life to a plant that has been left in the dark. Light is more powerful than darkness. Healthy functioning is more powerful than unhappiness. Once your inherent mental health and happiness are acknowledged, they will be too powerful to remain an inactive force in your life. Once you recognize this feeling for what it is, it will become self-reinforcing until it overshadows any unhappiness that remains.
You don’t find light by studying the dark. I know this sounds obvious, and to a certain degree, it is. But this common-sense way of approaching life is anything but common. More often than not, therapists and friends will get you to describe your pain and look at the implications of it and the ‘reasons’ behind it in an attempt to bring you to a state of peace. You will be asked to explore the parts of your past that were painful and to ‘get in touch’ with your negativity and your dark side. If you are depressed, you are already in touch with your negativity. To become happy, you need to travel in the other direction – towards your healthy functioning. Please don’t misunderstand what I am saying: a good listener and a sympathetic ear can do wonders for the soul, and is a sign of a good friendship. I’m not attempting to place judgment or criticize typical therapeutic approaches and certainly not good friendships. Instead, I’m showing you how to decide for yourself what is going to bring you what you want in life. If you have a dark side, fine. Acknowledge it and move forward. Excessive thinking about your past and your problems will only convince you that you do, in fact, have good reasons to be upset and unhappy.
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