Absolutely--practice and progress.

I think some people have difficulty thinking about it in this way as they view trying to be positive as an all encompassing thing--meaning, you can only think happy, optimistic thoughts. But that's not what this is about.

It's just as unhealthy to only "look on the bright side" as it is to only see "the dark side" of things. They say looking at the world and people with rose colored glasses leads to denial about problems and conflicts, and things in life that are viewed as negative or super serious. But I would argue that always being negative leads to it's own kind of denial--denial that there is value to life, that there's a lot of good in people, and it's possible to get well, that there are solutions to problems, etc.

It's important to be positive when there are things to genuinely be positive about, but it's also important to be honest and realistic with yourself and others and not be afraid to confront and acknowledge problems in your life and in the world. I think the big challenge is learning to balance all these perspectives and is probably something you work on for the rest of your life.

--Ceara1010