How Therapy Helps Us Cherish Positive Moments Amid Social Turmoil
In times of social and political upheaval, staying grounded and connected to positive experiences can feel challenging, even impossible. When the world feels chaotic, it’s easy to overlook small moments of joy or struggle to find any joy at all. Therapy can be an anchor, helping people identify, savor, and sustain these moments of light amidst uncertainty. Even though therapy cannot fix a broken system, it can help us to thrive and gain the resilience and strength we need to create new webs of support in times in the following ways.
1. Reconnecting with the Present
Therapy encourages a return to the present moment, a particularly valuable skill to have when the future feels unpredictable. Many of us find our minds racing with “what ifs” and worst-case scenarios, which blinds us to the possibility of neutral or positive outcomes and causes us to “freeze” out of fear. Our team of therapists often use mindfulness techniques to help you become aware of your thoughts and accompanying emotions without judgment, reconnecting you to the here and now. By learning to be present, we become more attuned to small but meaningful moments, like a friend’s laughter, a shared meal, or the warmth of sunlight. These seemingly simple experiences can be sources of profound joy if we allow ourselves to notice them and help us get unstuck when we are feeling flooded by the negative events around us.
2. Validating Positive Emotions Amid Chaos
In periods of societal turmoil, joy can feel out of place or even selfish. Therapy helps normalize and validate all emotions, including positive ones, as essential parts of the human experience. Our therapists can remind you that feeling joy does not mean ignoring the world’s pain; rather, it equips us to engage more fully with compassion and resilience. Embracing moments of happiness doesn’t make us indifferent but instead builds our inner strength to face the challenges around us. Therapy encourages us to honor these joyful moments as acts of self-care, reinforcing that our capacity for joy and empathy can coexist and in fact fuel each other.
3. Creating Emotional Resilience Through Joy
Therapy helps us see that joy is not a luxury, but a necessity for emotional resilience. In sessions, your therapist may guide you to reflect on past memories of joy, helping to “bank” these moments mentally. We also encourage you to find “glimmers” of joy which are the opposite of trauma triggers - those little moments that spark hope - so you can practice catching the beautiful moments that inspire you. This practice allows people to build a reserve of positive experiences that can act as a cushion during difficult times. By recognizing these moments and recalling them when needed, we cultivate an emotional strength that carries us through even when we acknowledge and validate the darkness around us as well.
4. Fostering Gratitude in Small Moments
Therapy can shift our focus from what’s overwhelming to what’s nourishing. Practicing gratitude—whether through a journal, daily reflections, or therapeutic exercises—teaches us to value small but meaningful parts of our lives. Even a few moments of gratitude each day can amplify our joy and bring balance to our emotional landscape. Gratitude can range from deeply positive emotions to simply acknowledging the things you see around you that make your life more meaningful or pleasant and cultivating this practice can help to provide the strength and resourcefulness to combat the equally real negative effects of social and political unrest.
Through therapy, we learn to protect and prioritize joy, even amid social turmoil. These moments of light remind us of our resilience, connection, and capacity to find beauty and meaning in the world, no matter how turbulent it may be. We are honored to be able to help you during these uncertain times so please reach out today for your free therapy consultation.