The “Sunny-Side Up” Syndrome is Stealing Your Happiness
We all suffer from it without realizing the obvious symptoms
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“I was looking at the year 2021 in hindsight, and it has been a horrible year for me.”
A friend of mine gave me his verdict on how he felt this year had been for him. Promotions at his workplace are due tomorrow, and he didn’t make it while others, less deserving than him for a fact, made it.
He’ll probably make it next year and it will all be forgotten but currently, the pain is real and it’s the only thing he sees. That’s how these things work.
That’s when I from an outsider’s objective viewpoint assessed his year and replied:
“So, you finally found a soulmate this year and you’re scheduled to marry her next year.
You moved in your aging parents to your own apartment and are a proud son who’s done an amazing job in taking care of them.
Your dad had a bunch of health scares but largely got through them unscathed. You got some great recognition and growth at work as well.
Amidst all this, you were able to lose the unhealthy kilos you’d put on and got back into good shape.
Ummm, I am trying to see how that makes for a horrible year.”
Didn’t take him very long to reply with:
“Wow! I had been a bit off all evening, all that just changed my mood. Thank you!”
With his mood lightened up, we moved on to much more essential topics of discussion i.e. gossip, but I’ll skip those details here.
I had done nothing to really help him but show him things he was conveniently ignoring. He was doing what all of us do, nearly every day, and put ourselves through self-created misery.
He was exhibiting the classic signs of what I am calling the “Sunny-side Up Syndrome.” Puzzled? Let me explain.
Glass-half-full Has a New Avatar
We all know what the classic glass-half-full principle means. If you’ve got a glass of water that’s half full or half empty, the optimist will see it as half full and the pessimist will see it as half empty.
