Positive Psychology - Positive Medicine

So what is positive psychology, and how can we use it for our health benefit? 

No one is 100% mentally & physically healthy all the time. We are all born with the best possible set of cells. From day one, life affects each individual uniquely and differently, shaping a specific mental and physical framework for each of us and creating a specific blueprint for that individual. We all cope with a spectrum of psychological and physical imperfections or ‘dis-ease’ daily across our lifespan. But when we get stuck in a chronic health condition or a difficult life transition, we often feel like any healthy aspects of ourselves no longer exist. One can identify with the disease itself. Whatever disease or condition we get into at any point in our lives, there are always healthy parts of us that can be activated and employed to help us regain better health. The human body and mind are amazingly resilient and adaptable and have natural solid tendencies toward regaining health balance. That balance is called Homeostasis.

The Metaphor of an Acrobat:

Humans are like acrobats walking on a thin line, constantly balancing their well-being. That is what life and health are about—the balancing act of destruction and reparation. When we get too chaotic (which often happens when life gets too busy, wild or out of hand and complex), or when we get too rigid (which can happen when we desperately try “to be perfect”, or when we slip into aging stale habits without reviewing them periodically) in that balancing process, we can lose access to our inborn natural ability to rebalance ourselves. ‘An acrobat’ needs to remember how to play the game to regain stability with lots of flexibility. Sounds easy! But we all know how difficult it can be. Life is most difficult and messy. Especially during hormonal fluctuations like puberty, pregnancy and peri/ menopause; or when the chronic disease already sets in place.

Positive Psychology applied to a medical model activates our positive, healthy psychological resources (strengths) to reintegrate and rebalance the healthy Self. That is Positive Medicine. Being a flexible, mindful and skilful acrobat on our lifeline, regaining the balance when life becomes more turbulent and challenging.

Our bodies constantly interact with the environment; in that interaction process, our bodies change as an adaption to the environment. During this interaction, millions of processes are constantly happening inside our bodies and minds, potentially leading to different forms of physiological mistakes. This is a normal phenomenon. Our bodies naturally repair those “mistakes” all the time, and returning to a healthy state is called Homeostasis.

One starts developing a disease if the body does not return to Homeostasis. Sometimes in our life, we are more susceptible to developing a disease, like when going through significant life transitions like (peri)menopause, ageing, etc. In those times, one can feel genuinely stuck and lonely.

Finding small or big “nuggets” of mental and physical strength amid difficulty and exercising them, allowing them to flow and engage all other healthy functions of our bodies in a naturally healthy way, is what I call Positive Medicine.

I call it Positive Medicine.

At the core of Positive Psychology is understanding and acknowledging our emotions and their role in our health. That is also called Emotional Awareness.

Positive Psychology and Emotional Awareness are about recognising, reconnecting and then befriending our emotions, becoming increasingly aware of their constant presence, and acknowledging their transitory nature and significance. It is an excellent starting point for restoring our body and mind balance, which leads us towards ease and away from the disease.