The tyranny of positive thinking?

“The whole ‘positive’ thing from a psychiatrist’s point of view is a complicated issue. One of the things patients say to me during and after their treatment is it’s a balance of trying to reconcile what’s happened, deal with the fear it could come back but not stay locked in that state. Most people I see have at some level worried they would die, but they are almost universally pressured by their family and friends not to go there. Being positive is something that is highly valued in our society and I don’t think that is always a good thing. When it is something that comes from the person themselves, that is different, but when it is imposed externally – I have a real problem with that. I call it the tyranny of positive thinking.”
Dr Jane Turner, psychiatrist from the University of Queensland (from Positive by Sally Collings, HarperCollinsPublishers Australia 2009)

When I started researching Positive, I focused on finding people who had had some kind of good experience or outcome (emotional, spiritual, physical, psychological) as a result of cancer. It was refreshing in a way to talk with psychiatrist Jane Turner, who has a very clear-eyed understanding of why people might see positives in a circumstance like that. I agree that sometimes we run fast so death doesn’t catch us, or keep a smile on our face because we don’t want to let the tears out. At the same time, I do believe there can be an authentic experience of self-discovery and revelation that follows the profound shock of a cancer diagnosis.