My previous article explored the concept of toxic positivity and how it can stealthily creep into our lives when encountering difficult or traumatic situations and events. The article describes how toxic positivity creates an unhealthy energy imbalance due to the suppression, or ignoring of, emotions we deem “negative. ” It also discusses the need for reclaiming balance in our lives and breaking this harmful cycle in order to move toward wholeness. During my challenges with toxic positivity, Reiki has been an invaluable resource as it gently led me to accept and embrace all of who I am.
Today’s article offers suggestions for Reiki practitioners to reduce or eliminate toxic positivity in their lives to help restore balance on the path to wholeness and authenticity. This article’s recommendations reflect what Reiki taught me during my journey through, and ultimately out of, the toxic positivity trap. These suggestions have also been effective with clients struggling with toxic positivity.
Feel Your Feelings
This sounds deceptively simple. We can all agree that feeling your feelings is normal and healthy. Yet, how many times have you experienced an unpleasant emotion (rage, greed, jealousy, hatred, etc.) and immediately suppressed it, tamped it down, “stuffed” it? Humans have an astonishing ability to reject anything that creates discomfort or even its possibility. We are quite skilled at keeping our potentially distressing feelings under wraps, hidden from everyone, including ourselves.
It helps to remember that emotions are not inherently positive or negative, good or bad. They are simply “energy in motion.” But we label them according to the feelings the emotions create. We interpret those feelings through our “good or bad” filters and then reject or suppress those that elicit an uncomfortable or painful reaction. Even though, as energy healers, we know that this suppression is pointless because those emotions remain with us, in our energy fields and physical bodies, until triggered once again. Continuing to ignore them by focusing exclusively on “good vibes only” keeps us in a constant state of imbalance and limits growth.
So, the first step away from toxic positivity is to feel your feelings. This means allowing yourself to experience all your feelings as they arise, not just those we like or deem acceptable or worthy. Permitting ourselves to experience the full range of human emotions without judgment ultimately releases us from self-sabotaging behavior and thoughts. It frees us to live life in wholeness as an authentic Spark of the Divine. Although it can be challenging to break the unhealthy patterns, it is far more challenging to live life halfway – rejecting who we are and denying ourselves the opportunity for growth and wholeness.
When an unpleasant emotion arises, permit yourself to feel it without judgment. For example, when next you feel anger, let yourself experience it without attaching thoughts or labels that give it power and lead to a reaction. Recognize it for what it is – energy in motion. Of course, this will require some practice; be patient with yourself as you learn to become comfortable with the panoply of feelings that comprise the human experience.
Identify and Acknowledge
As you allow yourself to feel the emotion, the next step is to identify it. What is it that you are feeling? Mindfully identifying the emotion provides space between it and an automatic reaction, offering a chance to view it dispassionately without giving it power. Identifying the emotion then leads to acknowledging it as a valid part of you that contributes to your wholeness and authenticity. In other words, the acknowledgment validates the emotion without labeling it as good or bad.
For example, when you feel anger rising, allow yourself to feel it without judgment or reaction, identify it, and then acknowledge it as a necessary and valid part of yourself. For myself, accepting the emotion of anger was a substantial challenge because I disliked feeling angry and believed that I needed to overcome those feelings to be a “good person.” So, I ignored and suppressed the anger when it arose and put on a happy smiling face. This behavior, of course, is toxic positivity in action. Unsurprisingly, the anger did not vanish, its energy merely stuffed away, and over time, it turned inward and eventually manifested as depression.
Many years passed before I realized, with Reiki’s steady guidance, how self-destructive this pattern had become, and how deeply toxic positivity had ensnared me. But eventually, I learned, and now, when the emotion of anger (or any uncomfortable emotion) appears, I feel it, identify it, and acknowledge it, without judgment. As a result, I am healthier, stronger, and more balanced.
Research studies have shown that those who routinely accept all their emotions without judgment or reaction tend to experience fewer “negative” emotions and can better manage stress.1
Express Gratitude
It may sound counterintuitive to be thankful for the unpleasant emotions, but it is a necessary part of releasing toxic positivity. As we feel, identify, and acknowledge these emotions, expressing gratitude for even the unpleasant ones reminds us that we are fully human as well as fully divine. Being grateful for every part of our human experience also indicates that we are living in alignment with our spiritual selves by recognizing that we are whole and complete and that there is no light without the dark. And, practically speaking, uncomfortable emotions are protective mechanisms that let us know when something in our lives needs to change.
For example, in the form of resentment or frustration, anger can signal the need for change in a relationship and may serve as a vehicle for that change. Recognizing the need for change allows us to learn more about ourselves and offers valuable lessons for growth. When we view unpleasant emotions through this lens of opportunity, we are more likely to be grateful for the full range of feelings that defines the human experience. With that in mind, expressing gratitude for “inconvenient” and troubling emotions becomes a natural result of accepting who we are – fully human and fully Divine. Additionally, just like feeling your feelings, identifying, and then acknowledging them, the practice of gratitude requires mindfulness and a focus on the present moment, serving to balance and center ourselves.
As noted earlier, Reiki’s guidance led me to implement the above suggestions as I worked to release toxic positivity from my life and reclaim balance. As with most of the life challenges I have encountered, Reiki guided me through the process of self-discovery and the release of limiting unhealthy patterns. And, as always, its wisdom continues to reveal the way forward. So, as you move through your life challenges, remember to feel your feelings, for only then can you set them free.
Resources:
Article by Kathleen Johnson
Free eBook download: We’ve created an eBook with our best articles on this topic, and offer it for free to all our newsletter subscribers.
Kathleen Johnson is a Holy Fire III Reiki Master, Usui Reiki Master, Kundalini Reiki Master, and a Certified Crystal Healer. She is also a Past-Life Soul Regression Therapist, and an Angelic Soul Activation Practitioner. As a Spiritual Teacher and Mentor, she assists others in discovering their unique path to wellness, wholeness, and authenticity.
Kathleen is the Founder of UniverSoul Heart, LLC, a holistic healing and wellness practice based in Pennsylvania, USA. Her education includes a B.A. in Psychology and an M.A. in Criminology, as well as extensive postgraduate studies in Mental Health Counseling and Transpersonal Psychology. Although she taught Reiki for several years, this changed in 2020 when Reiki’s guidance redirected her focus to working with individuals during this pivotal time in humanity’s history.
Kathleen is committed to raising awareness of the benefits of Reiki and holistic wellness. To that end, she has been a co-host as well as a presenter and sponsor for the Reiki Rays Annual Summit since 2017. She has also been a featured guest in numerous radio interviews and also hosted “UniverSoul Heart Radio with Kathleen Johnson- Sensible Spirituality for Everyday Living” on Transformation Talk Radio. Most recently, she co-hosted Seasons 1-3 on the “Beyond the Reiki Gateway” podcast, and in January 2025 was interviewed by MysticMag, in which she shares healing insights and revelations during her transformative journey as founder of UniverSoul Heart. In February 2025, she was a guest on “The Way 126” podcast to discuss Reiki and its benefits.
In her personal life, Kathleen is a passionate advocate for animals and Mother Earth, and as such, committed to a compassionate plant-based lifestyle. In 2021, she became certified as a Plant-Based Nutritionist through Cornell University’s Nutrition Studies Program. She is the mother of 4 grown sons and grandmother to two beautiful babies, who each clutch a substantial piece of her heart in their precious little hands.
Kathleen’s articles about Reiki and Spirituality have been published on Reiki Rays, Reiki News Magazine, and Medium.com. Her eBook “Let Reiki Guide the Way” is available on her website.
Kathleen can be contacted at kjohnson@universoulheart.net.
Leave a Reply