How can you be happy when the world is suffering?
War, the biodiversity crisis, the death of a loved one, a friend going through a nasty divorce, a homeless child, your mother’s dishwasher broke …. Big and small things cause suffering. Far away things and close to home things cause suffering. This list could go on forever … there is an awful lot of suffering in the world. You just have to turn on the news and you get it served on a plate. So how can you be happy when all of this is going on? How on earth is it even possible to be happy? And … how dare you?
In the previous post, I talked about what happens when the suffering takes place in someone close to you. In this post, I am going to expand the same question to the bigger problems in the world!
Do you get overwhelmed by the bigger problems in the world?
Big problems in the world … there are many. It can get overwhelming pretty quickly. There have been times that all the negative items in the news around climate change, the biodiversity crisis and natural disasters had me in a state of great fear, anxiety and depression. It is difficult not to take on the doom and gloom of the constant messaging in the media, right?
You see so many things that can go wrong…. And you are right!
It’s easy to get sucked in and think and worry a lot about the how, the why and the consequences of things. These problems are complex and with all this thinking you may be gaining a better understanding. You process information deeply, thoroughly analysing it and exploring various implications. You are probably also a good observer and have an ability to recognise patterns, anticipate problems … (These abilities are not exclusive to but all typical of Highly Sensitive Women)
Consequently, you see so many things that can go wrong…. And you are right! The world is in a dire situation, and many people still don’t seem to understand. It is a depressing thought. It doesn’t seem possible to be happy, and it also doesn’t seem to be appropriate to be happy …
I want to ask you a question:
What happens when you are in this state of fear, depression, doom and gloom?
I noticed that it made me feel quite hopeless and helpless, it was paralysing. It made me unable to contribute something useful. Because I was so unwell, I was merely surviving. I felt like a burden. Does this resonate with you?
Read my previous post to see how I came to feel that being happy when others were suffering was not okay. You will then understand that I applied this also to the bigger problems in our world. However, there was no way that was I able to keep carrying all the suffering in the world. So to protect myself I began to avoid the news.
Avoiding the news does not mean that you don’t care!
If you struggle with these issues I can definitely recommend avoiding the news. It does not mean that you don’t care. It does not mean that you don’t want to be informed. It means that you are giving yourself some space to recover from the constant barrage of negativity. Because, dear caring Soul, when you take it on so deeply, it is all way too much to handle for one person. You don’t have to carry all of it by yourself!
You do know very well what is going on. You need to ask yourself: how many times do you need to hear it and how many details of all the bad things that are happening do you really need to know? And what about positive news?
Look for positive news!
I developed a strategy where initially I would only accept from my partner the things that he thought I really, really needed to know. He would tell me about it, without all the sensation and images that you see in the news. I also started looking for positive news. I created a network of people who were doing great things for the earth. Reading about their work inspired me, and it gave me hope.
What happens when you choose a state of happiness, energy and creativity?
Can you see what began to happen to me? It is not just about giving yourself some space. This is only the first step that you can take to completely turn this around. When you begin to take care of yourself a space opens up where you begin to feel better and can you imagine what might happen when you feel better?
You will have more energy, you will have more positive thoughts and emotions, you will have more capacity for creative thinking and problem solving. How does that sound in the bigger scheme of things?
It now so happens that all these abilities that you have, that have been burdening you so much – the deep thinking and processing, the capacity to detect patterns and predict consequences, combined with a talent for creative thinking – are actually qualities that you can use in a positive way, to really make a difference!
Take some inspiration from the featured image “Wildflower in the Desert” and look how this flower is spreading beauty and happiness in an uninhabitable environment. A small insect has quickly found the flower and the nourishment it has to give. And a second flower bud can already be seen following it’s lead and more will soon follow!
Imagine being able to contribute something meaningful to help solve the bigger problems of the world, instead of keeping on suffering and being unproductive. Imagine inspiring the people around you, to rise out of their doom and gloom and join you on a path of positive and meaningful actions. A path where you can see clearly that it is okay to be happy, because when you are happy you have so much more to give, just like that flower!
I want this! How do I do it?
Congratulations! You just made a really important shift! You can now really see how being happy in a world that is suffering can be a good thing! How being happy gives you much more capacity to show that you care in more meaningful and productive ways!
So, what’s next? How do you pull yourself out of the negative spiral and completely turn your life around?
The best way to start cultivating this kind of happiness is by taking really good care of yourself! You can easily begin to do that by developing a deep connection with nature. You will feel it assists you in so many ways:
- It helps you recover from stress and find a sense of calm.
- It helps your brain recover from overwhelm and open up a space for soft fascination and quiet reflection.
- It helps you connect with your creativity.
- It helps you connect with your authentic self and it helps you connect with something bigger then yourself, and find your place in it.
- It even helps you connect to other ways of knowing and to your purpose in life!
If you want to bring this shift to life, and confidently allow yourself to walk through life happily, while making a positive contribution and get some help in doing so, I would love to coach you. If you want make a difference and help to solve the bigger problems in this world without burning yourself out and you would like some support, I would love to coach you. Book a Free Discovery Session to explore your options:
