Why Toxic Positivity Has No Place in 2025
“Just think positive!”
“It’ll all work out!”
“Good vibes only!”
Put it on a t-shirt. Maybe a wall poster. Try your hardest to squash anything that's not positive edging into your mind.
**cue Dory’s ‘just keep swimming, just keep swimming’ vibe
We’ve all heard the phrases, probably even said them ourselves, thinking we were offering support. But as we race through 2025, it’s beyond time to leave toxic positivity behind. Why? Because it’s not helping—it’s hurting.
What Is Toxic Positivity?
Toxic positivity is the insistence on maintaining a positive outlook no matter what—even in the face of pain, struggle, or complexity. While positivity itself isn’t the problem, forcing it can invalidate real emotions and prevent authentic connection.
Think about it: when was the last time someone telling you to “look on the bright side” actually made you feel better? Likely, it didn’t. Instead, it may have left you feeling unseen, dismissed, or even ashamed of your feelings.
Why It’s Harmful
Suppressing Emotions:
When we’re told to “stay positive,” it implies that our “negative” emotions are bad or wrong. It lacks compassion, creates guilt, and can lead to emotional suppression, which somatic research shows contributes to physical tension and long-term stress.^
Breaking Authentic Connection:
Toxic positivity creates distance. If someone can’t hold space for your genuine feelings, it’s hard to feel connected to them. Relationships thrive on authenticity, not perfection.
Fueling Burnout:
In a culture that prizes resilience and hustle, toxic positivity can push people to ignore their limits, leading to exhaustion and disconnection from their own needs.
The Alternative: Authentic Positivity
Instead of blanket positivity, let’s embrace nuanced emotional intelligence. Here’s what that looks like:
Acknowledging All Emotions:
Every emotion has value. Anger signals boundaries. Sadness invites rest. Fear encourages caution. By allowing all emotions, we create space for growth and healing.
Somatic Tools for Emotional Processing:
Using self pleasure, breathwork, movement, notice where emotions are living in your body. Instead of suppressing them, these practices help you move through them.
Holding Space for Others:
When someone shares their struggles, resist the urge to “fix”. Sometimes, the best gift is simply saying, “I hear you. That sounds hard.”
Why 2025 Demands a Shift
As we navigate an era of AI, global uncertainty and change (2025 has been a rollercoaster already am I right?), people are craving authenticity more than ever. In 2025, the trends we need are clear: emotional resilience, nervous system regulation, and deeper connection are taking center stage. Toxic positivity has no place in this landscape. It’s time to replace it with realness, empathy, and the courage to feel it all.
This shift isn’t just theoretical—it’s deeply physical. Our emotions don’t just exist in our minds; they live in our bodies, shaping the way we move, breathe, and respond to life. Somatic work helps us break free from the emotional suppression that toxic positivity creates, offering tools to regulate our nervous systems and reconnect with what’s real. Instead of forcing positivity, we cultivate resilience—the kind that allows us to meet life’s ups and downs with presence, honesty, and self-trust.
Somatic work offers a powerful alternative to the “good vibes only” trap by bringing you back into your body—where real emotions, sensations, and truth reside. Instead of bypassing discomfort, somatics help you feel, process, and move through emotions in a way that fosters deep self-trust and resilience. In my coaching, we shift from suppressing what’s real to fully experiencing and integrating it, so you can embody “real vibes only” in a way that feels grounded, authentic, and truly empowering.
Final Thoughts
Let’s make the rest of 2025 the year we leave behind “good vibes only” and embrace the full spectrum of our humanity. Maybe “real vibes only” is the new wall poster we all need hanging above the mantle. When we allow ourselves to feel deeply, we open the door to true healing, connection, and joy. And isn’t that what we’re all here for?
^ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37648224/?utm_source=chatgpt.com
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2025/jan/26/the-mindbody-revolution-how-the-division-between-mental-and-physical-illness-fails-us-all
