After I burned out, I remember listening to someone talk about positive thinking. You know the kind - “Just think good thoughts and your life will change!”

But instead of feeling uplifted, I felt… irritated. Something didn’t sit right.

I realized that no amount of positive thinking was going to get me past the backlog of unprocessed emotions sitting heavy in my body.

I didn’t need a better mindset - I needed a freer mind. That’s when I started to get curious about our internal states - our thoughts, emotions and sensations. Over the years I have learned to distinguish the difference between thinking, positive thinking, and true optimism.

I hope this framework gives you something to think about - no pun intended.

Thinking is a tool - but it can also be a trap.

Thinking helps to solve problems. It is useful until it isn’t.

When we overthink, we try to solve our way out of discomfort. We analyze, explain, and plan in hopes of escaping a feeling we’d rather not feel. And the more we think, the deeper those patterns get wired into our system.

Eventually, thinking becomes a way to bypass our bodies. We tense up. We armor ourselves. And because our survival brain equates “being right” with “being safe,” we hold onto our thoughts like lifelines - even when they’re dragging us under.

Positive thinking sounds helpful… but it can backfire.

Positive thinking focuses our attention to look on the bright side - of how things can turn out for the better. It takes effort to frame everything in a positive light.

And if it doesn’t match our lived experience, it creates inner conflict. Our bodies know when something isn’t true. Trying to “stay positive” when you feel overwhelmed, resentful, or exhausted isn’t healing - it’s just treading water.

There are times when you just need to get through a period and there’s nothing wrong with that. But when you notice your positive attitude is getting in the way of making progress, you know it’s back firing.

True optimism is something different.

Optimism is a natural confidence and openness that arises when your mind is free from being cluttered with fear and pressure. It’s not a thought - it’s a state of being.

It doesn’t come from trying harder. It comes from examining your thinking and loosening the grip on the thoughts that keep you spinning. Getting to the root of the thought and what it creates for you is a practice.

You begin to listen to the parts of you that are ready to be heard, felt, and set free.

The mind quiets and the body softens. And in that space, you start to see other possibilities again. Optimism emerges. It might even feel weird at first.

​Keep shining! Julie​
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