K is for Keeping Positive

I struggled to think about a K subject and then all of a sudden it came to me.

So today K is for....

Keeping Positive!

Keep Positive and Stay Positive are phrases and advice people hear a lot - well I do anyway. As you know I've been a bit poorly (still am) and I do realise I have been given a second chance and am lucky to be alive. I am eternally gratefully to our NHS and the staff that looked after me and continue to do so. I am beyond thankful to my husband, son, family and friends for supporting me and loving me and for continuing to do so.

However in the wee small, dark hours when you can't sleep and stupid thoughts are stomping through your head, keeping positive is really hard. I'll admit that before I became ill I didn't really understand depression and I didn't understand how low people could feel.

Despite having my hubby lying beside me when I'm awake at 3am I feel so alone. I often get up and watch some crap TV or a film - at the moment the Twlight Saga so I can get my fix of Jacob Black! - or I read. Anything to stop my brain working overtime on stupid thoughts.

My thoughts are usually things that happened years ago where I wish I had acted in a different way. Sometimes I did nothing so my brain then wants me to work out a new scenario.

So Keeping Positive, how do we do that? The internet is full of motivational quotes, tips and helpful advice to assist you in changing your life. The thing is changing your life is usually not an option. You can't simply move house, change jobs or ignore family & friends that are bringing you down. There are more therapists, counsellors and motivational speakers than ever and agencies like the Samaritans are desperate for volunteers.

Google Keeping Positive and the first six results are:

4 simple mantras to help you stay positive and happy

How to stay positive: 11 smart habits

How to stay positive when you know your life sucks

5 tips to stay positive in negative situations

Stay positive

How to train your brain to stay positive

There are quotes a plenty too:

Keep your face to the sunshine and you cannot see a shadow - Helen Keller

Yesterday is not ours to recover, but tomorrow is ours to win or lose - Lyndon Johnson

When it rains, it pours, but soon the sun shines again - Anon

These tips are all very well, but in the moment, that very moment when you feel as awful as it's possible to feel, thinking positive is not an option. How can you pull yourself out of negativity to even to begin to feel better?

We used to have a Neighbour From Hell and I now help out on a forum for other victims Neighbours From Hell In Britain The trauma that these people go through is unthinkable. You would not believe what some human beings are capable of doing to other humans. Thinking positive in those circumstances is simply not an option. 

So next time you hear yourself saying "Keep Positive" or "Chin Up" think to yourself do you really mean it? Could you actually help that person or is it just words?

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