Is it even possible to be positive right now?

Seven ways I’m trying

No matter where you’re reading this from, your life has almost certainly changed in some unexpected ways in the last several weeks.

Social distancing means fewer hugs and high fives, and more waves from a safe distance. Sheltering in places means limiting visits to new spaces or friends’ homes, and more anxiety-inducing visits to the grocery store. Covering our faces with masks means fewer smiles and less conversation.

The world seems to be both falling apart and healing itself. We’re slowing down, yet also moving quickly to help others.

All of this is to say, there is a lot of change to adjust for and plenty of reasons to feel stressed, anxious, and just flat-out emotionally exhausted. You might be facing this pandemic to show up at work, by choice or by necessity (thank you to our healthcare workers, mail and package deliverers, grocery store and essential shop workers, airline workers, pilots, firefighters, paramedics, and anyone else who can’t work from home) or trying to adjust to a whole family sharing a space or living totally on your own in isolation (hi, that’s me).

While things might feel heavy and overwhelming at moments, there’s hope in science. Not just the science that’ll help us understand and eventually safely exist alongside COVID-19, but the science of mental health and positive psychology.