Lemonading

When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.

                  The other day I was scrolling social media, which is something I find myself doing too much of lately. Anyway, I came across a word I had never heard. It sounded made up and it probably is. The word is “lemonading”. The definition given on the post was “turning a negative situation into something positive, empowering, or creatively fruitful.” I immediately thought of the mental health and physical health aspects of the definition of this new word.

                  A quick internet search revealed that as would be expected this comes from the saying “When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.” At its essence it means turning something bad into something good. Lemonading is the idea of growing from negative experiences. We can learn from a setback. We can use rejection, failure, or pain as motivation. We can reframe negative experiences in a constructive manner. When we do these things, we are lemonading. 

                  When we are lemonading we are doing several positive things. One thing is boosting resilience. In doing this, we are not allowing ourselves to remain discouraged even when we face difficulties. Lemonading leads to shifts in mindset. Instead of focusing on the negative we are pushing ourselves towards optimism. We also incorporate problem-solving. This can build creativity. We are pushing ourselves to find new ideas or ways to move forward. All these things can lead to improvements in mental health. 

                  How does lemonading improve mental health? I doubt there is much research on this with respect to the term lemonading since it is such a new word. I think the benefits are fairly obvious, though. When we focus on the positive it helps us to feel better. We see the world in positive light when we are lemonading. While this is not going to cure mental illness, it might help to lift mood. It is part of the process of restructuring our thoughts or using self-talk to change our thoughts. For example, maybe we are struggling with our depression. Our thoughts are dark. If we attempt to use the practice of lemonading, we might try to find one thing that is positive. Maybe it is as simple as noticing the sun shining in a blue sky and focusing on that. Thoughts of a bright sun might remind us of a time when we did something fun in the sun. These thoughts can serve as a distraction for a bit. This is not going to make the depression go away, but it might make it a little easier to cope with. 

                  Another way a person with a mental illness might engage in lemonading is getting involved in raising awareness about mental illness. Let me share an example from my own life. I have lived with mental illness for nearly 40 years. It is painful. It is difficult. How do I engage in lemonading? I started sharing my story. I used my writing, which has always held my pain, to creatively share my experiences with depression and anxiety. This led to several positives. I published and sold my books. I gave talks and read from my books at bookstores and coffee shops. I discovered an awareness and advocacy group, NAMI, that changed my life. Through NAMI I have been able to continue sharing my story, teach others, and raise awareness about mental illness. While the word is new to me, I have been lemonading. I shifted the negative aspects of my mental illness into positives by reaching out to others. I continue to engage in lemonading. I am active member of NAMI. I also continue to write and share my story. This blog is an example of my lemonading. I have experienced creativity and growth in the face of the negatives of mental illness. 

                  Another example of lemonading is when people who have been struck by an illness start fundraising for a cure. Think of the countless number of charity walks that are held each year. My breast cancer diagnosis has led me to raise money for breast cancer research. In fact, I am planning another fundraiser now. NAMI Walks take place all over the country to raise money for mental illness. People who have lost loved ones to suicide often get involved in raising money for and awareness about suicide. There are walks and other fundraisers to help individuals with autism. The examples are countless. I think it is a part of human nature to want to help when surrounded by negatives. In this way lemonading has been around for long time. 

                  There are so many examples of lemonading in the world. I wish we saw them more frequently. Too often we are focused on the negative, but there is lemonading going on all around us. Can you think of any examples? Share them in the comments.