Feature photo by tudor
Ever wake up and know without a doubt that it was going to be a great day; your hair was fabulous, complexion was flawless, it was pay day and your day off and the weather was exactly what you hoped for? You head out to get the day started in anticipation of celebrating life at your favorite hangout afterward with your besties and whoever else shows up. Life is good!
First thing on the day’s agenda: Breakfast with Nelly, an old friend from back in the day.
Fast forward an hour and a half….you have officially retired for the evening and it’s not even ten a.m.! You feel drained, like you have been run over, your annoyed, you notice your reflection in the mirror and your hair isn’t as great as you thought and you may have just felt a pimple on your forehead…..oh, the effects of Nelly.
The only consistent aspect of her friendship is her complaining and negativity. She rarely has anything positive to say and although you have tried your best to help her see the brighter side of life- she simply refuses. Suddenly, you realize it is only when you are with Nelly you feel like your life is being sucked out of you. Whether you have been with her 5 minutes or 5 hours, the end result is always the same- you are roadkill who’s just been run over by Nelly whirling past you in her toxic tank fueled by pessimism!
Negative Nelly is sucking the joy out of your life, it is time to send her on her way and hope eventually she will find something to smile about.
You know how the saying goes, “Misery loves company”, what people fail to remember is they have a choice not to engage in such pessimism. You can be free from the the emotionally draining relationships you are in, you just have to dig your heels in and say “No more”.
Whether you are trying to avoid the toxic, infectious pessimistic people of the world or just looking to dump the one/s you have around you now-there is hope! Here are a few pointers for relieving yourself and refueling your system back into happy, harmonious sync.
1) Realize keeping close encounters with the despairing kind is toxic to your life.
Stress associated with such people can have an adverse effect on your optimistic perception. It may eventually sway you from your happy-go-lucky mindset to a depressed state of mind.
2) Relieve yourself of bleak company.
Regardless of relation, the only relationships worth having are the positive ones. You have every right to be cheery and so, don’t just forfeit your optimistic mindset to appease those around you who refuse to accept life can be full of beauty and enthusiasm.
3) Rose-colored glasses are what some doctors order.
Avoiding toxic people can be beneficial to your health. By avoiding cynical people, you enable yourself the ability to live a longer life- literally, as positive thinking has been credited with increasing life spans!
4) Remember it is ok to be happy.
A smile is infectious. Smiling is associated with happiness and there’s nothing better than spreading some joy.
5) Retrospection is be a beautiful thing.
Perhaps after losing a well-rounded individual like yourself, the dumped company may reassess their own behavior and change their sullen mentality to a much more flattering one.- One can always hope for the best.
When people decide to omit the negativity in their lives often times they may be ridiculed for not being a good person or friend. Don’t fret. In order to obtain the healthiest life possible, you must first retain the healthy aspects of what is around you, sometimes that means letting go of the not so healthy. It doesn’t make you a “bad” person to want to be happy and socialize with people who have similar personalities. Stand up for your convictions and do not feel compelled to stay in any unhealthy relationship. You can only control your own actions, you cannot control those of another person. Change does not always come easy for some, however, as the optimist that you are you know there is always a possibility better things are ahead. As far as Negative Nelly goes, well, I say buy her a little going away gift. Are you thinking what I’m thinking? Rose-colored glasses!