“Just good vibes only!” Have you heard that phrase lately? Maybe you’ve even said it. It’s plastered on t-shirts, coffee mugs, and motivational social media posts. It sounds so innocent, so uplifting, doesn’t it?
For years, I bought into it. I genuinely believed that if I just focused on the positive, pushed away anything negative, I’d be happier. I’d plaster a smile on my face, even when my insides felt like a tangled mess of wires. I’d tell myself to “snap out of it” when sadness or anger dared to show up.
But here’s the dark, uncomfortable truth I eventually learned: forcing happiness makes you miserable.
The Insidious Lie of “Good Vibes Only”
This isn’t about being a pessimist or dwelling in negativity. This is about acknowledging reality. Life isn’t a perpetual highlight reel. It’s messy. It’s joyful and heartbreaking, exhilarating and exhausting, often all in the same day.
The “good vibes only” mantra, at its core, is a form of emotional bypass. It’s a subtle, yet powerful, demand to suppress any feeling that isn't deemed
