Looking for the Light When There's Darkness

a post by Diana Raab for the World of Psychology blog

“There is mud, and there is the lotus that grows out of the mud. We need the mud in order to make the lotus.” ~ Thich Nhat Hanh

Over the past few years, many of us in the helping professions have noticed an emotional shift that feels like a sense of gloom hanging over much of our universe. Many factors have no doubt contributed to these feelings, such as personal, political, environmental, and global issues.

Some people have found themselves harboring a deep sense of darkness or negativity, but the fact is, there is no darkness without light. That is, we would not be able to understand the concept of dark feelings if, at some point, we had not seen the light. In most cases, for happiness to ensue, there needs to be a balance of lightness and darkness or, as the Taoists call it, the yin and the yang.

It’s true that sometimes the darkness overshadows the light, and for some people, it can be difficult to focus on positive thoughts. For very sensitive individuals, watching or listening to news broadcasts can be overwhelming and unbearable. As such, many have simply chosen to completely shut themselves off from this type of negative information overload.

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