Hope and Optimism as an Opportunity to Improve the “Positive Mental Health” Demand

Introduction: As the world confronts the COVID-19 pandemic and its consequences, including an associated mental health crisis, finding meaning and building positive processes and capacities will help strengthen future mental health (Waters et al., 2021). Existential perspectives use this basic insight to advocate that suffering is an inherent part of life that must be confronted, rather than avoided or amended (Israelashvili, 2021). Positive psychology studies adaptation to adversity and aims to identify factors that favour good psychological adjustment, as well as physical and mental health (Reppold et al., 2015; Phan et al., 2020). Notwithstanding, the mental-ill health approach is still predominant, with authors suggesting the need to improve “mental health literacy” and promote access to mental health services (Mansfield et al., 2020).