Why authentic positivity requires the courage to observe what we feel
02/24/2022 (Revised July 6, 2026)
In an age of mindful awareness and mainstream practices like yoga and meditation, this seems counterintuitive, but it is very possible to sweep our fears under the rug while engaging in these practices. While these ancient tools are indeed a natural part of maintaining human balance, we have found ways to avoid our fears and vulnerabilities. They can often be disguised by justifiable avoidance.
Chanting of positivity is common, which can make some feel guilty or inadequate for not following this positivity protocol, especially among the “spiritual” or “conscious” community. Observing what is happening in front of us does not automatically generate “negativity” like the dreaded avoidance.
Ancient contemplative practices such as Vipassana talk about observing sensations. They understood that our fears and perceptions are not simply stories in the mind, but are often experienced as sensations throughout the body. Modern neuroscience now demonstrates that emotions are embodied experiences that involve networks of brain, nervous system, hormones, and physiology. Objectively observing a sensation, feeling, or fear without immediately reacting to it is very different from endlessly thinking about it. Rumination simply reinforces known pathways of perception, while observation creates new pathways and new connections to our experiences. Sensation observation expands conscious awareness by bringing to awareness aspects of our internal experience that are constantly present but usually filtered out of attention.
This avoidance can include observing your personal experiences as well as observing you externally on a global scale. Becoming overly cautious with a positive attitude can actually make a person avoid you diligently. For an idea to be valid, the opposite must also be true, or at least a possibility. Both options are possible.
We are constantly in this polarization swing; good, bad, black, white, positive, negative, dark, light, etc. So this makes it uncomfortable to find a center or to see things as they are on a level of acceptance. But the desire to judge one extreme or the other often sends us into avoidance or the safety of positivity.
But how does positivity serve us when we use it to mask our fears instead of a state of positivity based on truly accepting what is presented in the moment? What fears appear in you or in me at that moment that require our attention? Fears want to be treated, and that’s it
that’s why it rises in our face!
Your wish is my command! Fear asks, “Where do you want to go, where do you want to be placed? Do you want to disguise yourself? Will I reappear in 5 minutes or 24 hours or 20 years? What do you want to do?”
This is very similar to the update or reboot messages we get on our phones and computers. It won’t just go away until you select an option, and often, if you don’t select an option, the process will start automatically.
Many choose to delay observing the fear and instead start a positivity program or any form of avoidance.
It’s important to understand that repeating positive statements while secretly feeling insecure can sometimes become another avoidance strategy. The body often records our unresolved fears, beliefs and emotional imprints. They do not necessarily disappear simply because we have chosen a more positive thought. Instead, they may bury themselves deeper and reveal themselves later through recurring emotional patterns, relationship challenges, or even mental and physical health disorders. Positivity works best when it is not used to avoid fear, but when it is combined with a willingness to acknowledge what is truly present.
Yet we have the opportunity to stand in a state of Positivity while standing in a state of Power. Self-positivity is about an inner confidence that everything will be alright. A sense of certainty that no matter what the road ahead, “I trust that I will cross. I may not know exactly how it will happen, but I know that I will make it, and I will be fine even in the darkness of not knowing what is on the other side.” This is a whole other level of positivity because you don’t need to convince yourself or others. There is no need for a polarized view of which side to choose in judgment. But instead, one is sure that all is well, regardless of the outcome.
It is a science of design and not simply a “spiritual” or “religious” concept (though still a science). We can all attest to this science because we have all seen it in action at various times in our lives. Especially if we raise our hands because we have run out of options, then one can somehow overcome from nothing. (However, we are programmed to slide the experience into whatever religious program we’re running, and that’s fine. However, this diminishes our ownership of who we are as the “fabric” of our existence.)
It really is a mind game! Fears give us the opportunity to see that they have no power, only the power we give them. Neuroscience also suggests that the brain becomes efficient at anything it repeatedly practices. By continually practicing fearful interpretations, even if unconsciously, the brain becomes more familiar with these pathways and begins to predict reality through this lens. This is one of the reasons why repeatedly looping through fearful perceptions is not the same as healing them. Observing without judgment breaks the automatic cycle and creates an opportunity to reshape perception itself.
However, fear serves many essential purposes in the “survival” of the physical form. However, survival depends on stored programs and protocols for this life.
This game we call reality is a complete feedback loop that interacts with our action-reaction response that feeds into the network or field around us.
So maybe at this moment examine what’s in front of you, what keeps popping up in your head, whether it’s global or personal. Know that whatever the outcome, don’t let anything threaten your mortality, your passions, and your imagination for a greater life experience.
Notice; be frustrated if you must, but remember that you are playing a human game and that everything has a purpose and a possibility; in your transformation and re-remembering of your masterly self! Sometimes the greatest act of positivity is not pretending fear doesn’t exist, but having the courage to sit with it, feel the feelings associated with it, and witness it without immediately running away from it. In doing so, we often discover that “the” fear asked to be acknowledged rather than hidden. From this place, a more authentic positivity can emerge, which is not based on avoidance, but on acceptance, trust, and a deeper connection with ourselves.
