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Authentic Happiness
Yes, I know Authentic Happiness by Martin Seligman was written in 2002, but I am reading it now and since May is Mental Health Awareness Month, I just want to offer this from it:
The thoughts of depressed individuals are dominated by negative interpretations of the past, of the future, and of their abilities, and learning to argue against these pessimistic interpretations relieves depression to just about the same extent as anti-depressant drugs (with less relapse and recurrence).
[A]ll emotions about the past are completely driven by thinking and interpretation . . . an interpretation, a memory, or a thought intervenes and governs what emotion ensues. This innocent-looking and obvious truth is the key to understanding how you feel about the past. More importantly, it is the key to escaping the dogmas that have made so many people prisoners of their past.
You can control how you think. And that, in turn, governs your emotions.
Who doesn't want to be happier?
Seligman also quotes the great Catholic mystic, Julian of Norwich:
But all shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of thing shall be well . . . He said not, "Thou shalt not be tempested, thou shalt not be travailed, thou shalt not be diseased," but He said, "Thou shalt not be overcome."
Have faith. Sunnier days, better times, happier moments are ahead on the road. Just take the steps to get there.
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