If you’re feeling triggered by current events, hope might be the best way to cope
When it comes to wellness and TikTok, there seems to be a new trend every week, but one in particular, called #Hopecore, has been gaining significant traction. Whether it’s appreciating a beautiful sunrise, sharing a story of personal growth, or highlighting acts of kindness, this trend is all about recognising and celebrating the good in everyday life. And boy, do we need a little bit of hope right now.
What exactly is hopecore?
“‘Hopecore’ embodies positivity, warmth, and celebration,” explains Dr Sophie Mort, mental health expert at Headspace. “In a world where we’re exposed to devastating news and uncertainty every day, it instead focuses on embracing the good in life, no matter how big or small.”
Counsellor Georgina Sturmer agrees, adding: “The concept of ‘hopecore’ represents a defiance towards negativity and pessimism. It’s a tacit acknowledgement of the addictive pull of doomscrolling, and how it can amplify negative thoughts, and leave us feeling sad, depressed, anxious, or hopeless.” Instead, Georgina suggests that ‘hopecore’ offers us a movement that promotes the sharing of moments that are “good, kind, beautiful, and that have the capacity to be uplifting”.
But it’s not just about being positive. “It involves validating all of our emotions,” says Dr Mort. “Fostering a supportive and empathetic environment, while encouraging a more optimistic, yet balanced outlook on life.”
Why do we need more hope?
So, how might it be helpful to our mindset? According to Dr Mort, as humans, we have a natural tendency to look for, and focus on, the bad things. “Embracing ‘hopecore’ can encourage us to cultivate a more positive mindset, and instead recognise any small, yet powerful glimmers of hope, positivity, or gratitude we feel throughout the day,” she says.
Dr Mort says these can be internal or external cues that cause us to feel connected to the world or the people around us, or create a feeling of safety and calmness. “They will likely look different for each of us; for some, it might be receiving a heartwarming text from a friend, while for others, it might be cuddling up on the sofa with our pet. However, noticing these experiences can help to soothe our nervous system, and make us feel more present.”
Georgina Sturmer believes that hopecore encourages us to retain perspective when we are feeling down. “It promotes simple, accessible ways to lift our mood, and help us to feel more grounded and content,” she says.
“The idea of hopecore also reminds us that we have a choice. That we have autonomy over the content that we choose to see, read, watch, and share. That we don’t have to be passive bystanders, and that we can choose to curate and select our own inspiration from the online world.”
Dr Mort agrees, going on to say: “Many live in an incredibly fast-paced society, and there are a lot of alarming and difficult things happening in the world right now. So celebrating the good in our everyday lives is important, now more than ever.”
“When we feel more hopeful about life, it can help us to feel more resilient in the face of life’s challenges,” adds Georgina. “This sense of hope and optimism can help us to feel less stressed and anxious, and more able to cope.”
What makes hopecore different from toxic positivity?
Most of us know by now that it’s not healthy to look on the bright side all the time, and Dr Mort is quick to remind us that ‘hopecore’, or being an upbeat person, doesn’t mean you need to be positive 100% of the time – because that’s not realistic.
She also says that it doesn’t mean we have to pretend everything is fine when it isn’t. “This is an example of ‘toxic positivity’, where positivity can be detrimental to our wellbeing by us not being authentic to our true feelings,” Dr Mort explains.
Georgina adds that toxic positivity suggests that we would benefit from ignoring, avoiding, or shutting down, any negative thoughts or feelings. “In practice, this can create, rather than reduce, problems and challenges,” she says. “When we avoid our feelings, they don’t disappear; they are likely to simmer and lead to unexpected and unpredictable consequences.”
By contrast, Georgina says that hopecore isn’t about ignoring the things that are negative in our lives. “It’s about accompanying them with a side order of hope and optimism,” she says. “So that we can stay present, acknowledge our fears and worries, but also take strength from the idea of feeling hopeful.”
Dr Mort shares this view, adding that while hopecore celebrates the positive parts of life, it still acknowledges and accepts the reality of life’s potential difficulties and, at the same time, encourages a hopeful outlook. She says: “It encourages a balanced perspective, recognising that being a positive person is someone who is able to honour the ebbs and flows of life, and remain able to see the glimmers and moments of hope, even when life or the world isn’t feeling very hopeful.”
1. Find a mindfulness practice that works for you. Dr Mort says building a mindfulness practice can help us to bring hopecore into our lives, as it helps us recognise those positive moments by increasing our awareness of the present, our thoughts, and how we feel in response to certain cues and events.
“It can also encourage us to train our minds, in the same way we might train our muscles, to see the beauty and existing positivity in our lives,” she says. “Apps such as Headspace are a great way to get stuck into practising mindfulness, in a gentle way; the ‘Everyday Gratitude’ and the ‘Appreciation’ course can be a great place to start.”
2. Acknowledge what you feel grateful for. “Whether we jot these items down, or simply say them aloud each morning, practising gratitude for the things we appreciate in our lives can help to encourage us to embrace hopecore,” says Dr Mort. “And these don’t have to include big life achievements, even on the days where we might struggle to feel grateful for certain things, we can keep it simple like: ‘I’m grateful that I got five minutes of extra sleep.’”
3. Play an active role in curating your social media feed. Georgina says this starts with noticing which users, posts, themes, and topics leave you feeling inspired, and which leave you feeling full of doom. “Consider how you can change settings, put boundaries in place, and adjust your use of the online world in order to feel more hopeful,” she says.
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