“Today I choose life.  Every morning when I wake up I can choose joy, happiness, negativity, pain…To feel the freedom that comes from being able to continue to make mistakes and choices – today I choose to feel life, not to deny my humanity but to embrace it.”  – Kevin Aucoin

This quote is true in so many ways.  We have the privilege to choose how we are going to feel every morning we wake up.  Some mornings we wake up feeling under the weather or anxious about what the day brings.  Some mornings, from the moment we wake up our emotions have already been decided for us.  Sometimes we are sad, nervous, happy, excited, etc.  Sometimes our emotions get caught up in the monotony of our day-to-day lives.  

We have a choice to make every morning.  How are we going to feel today?  Our life’s circumstances do not have to dictate how we are going to feel.  If we are going through a difficult time, it is our choice to either let that difficulty run our lives or we can choose a different way to feel while going through this difficulty.  It’s okay to choose what ever it is you want to choose.

If you want to choose negativity, go ahead and choose negativity.  It is pretty cliché to say, “choose happiness.”  As much as I want to sit here and tell you to choose happiness, sometimes choosing happiness isn’t always possible.  Sometimes we just have to feel the pain, the negativity, and the sadness.  That is okay.  Feel it.  Embrace it.  Learn from it.  Move on from it.  We can’t choose happiness until we feel all those other ‘not so happy’ emotions.  

Are you tired of choosing pain, depression, or sadness?  Choose joy!  Try something new.  Kick that negativity in the behind.  It’s your choice.  We all get fed up with our emotions at one time or another.  “Why am I still feeling this way?” Is a questions I’m sure many of us have asked ourselves.  Get mad, get angry, and say good-bye to feeling bad.  Show that bad feeling who’s boss and choose…

Choose life.  You don’t have to deny any parts of you.  Many times we try to deny the ugly parts or the hurtful parts.  DON’T.  Acknowledge them.  Learn from them.  Heal from them.  All of this is possible.  It may seem scary but you don’t have to do it alone, a mental health counselor can walk you through this process. There is no shame in asking for help.  We are here to help you through all of this.  You CAN choose joy and happiness!