What’s Behind the Smile?

Hello friends! Today I’m going to address something that has been bothering me for a while and that I’ve been thinking about a lot lately. I’m sure we all know someone who seems to never have a bad day. They’re always annoyingly happy, and generally social, heck, they’re the center of every social group they enter. I’d like for you to imagine the person you’re (probably) thinking of and try to recall a moment where their mouths weren’t curved up right. This was pretty hard for me to do, from what I can remember, my “little miss sunshine” has never not been sending out positive vibes, and that makes me sad.

Many people associate generally happy people with positivity, and it makes sense. However, that connection could trap this person in a false sense of happiness. Wouldn’t you feel pressured to remain positive if the people around you depends on you to do so? If you’re in this situation I’m here to tell you that you do not have to be responsible for your friends happiness.

I completely understand the pressure to remain bubbly. You’re friends may look to you for a smile or for unconditional support. By no means am I saying that you absolutely shouldn’t provide that to them, but they shouldn’t rely on you for their own happiness, even if it’s subconsciously. In this situation, you, being the “ray of sunshine,” lose your true feelings and opinions, and are guided towards more conventional and optimistic thoughts. Please remember that your feelings are import as your friends, and that it’s okay to have cloudy days sometimes. You’re only human, and even happy humans have bad days.

Speaking to those who often interact with consistently positive people: I urge you to look behind the smile and see the real person. Often times, they won’t share their true feelings because it goes against their general personality. This denial of emotions is dangerous; repressing emotions has a negative impact on one’s mental health. We don’t see what happens behind closed doors, and it’s important to remember that their feelings are as important as your own.

Both parties in this situation have done absolutely nothing wrong. I definitely did not mean to imply this at any part of the post, I simply wanted to remind every one that their feelings are valid and that other’s are too.