If you’re new here, you might wonder: What is positive psychology and why does it matter?

My journey with Positive Psychology began one evening in 2018, as I sat on the middle landing of my staircase, feeling completely stuck in regards to a situation I was facing. It was a familiar feeling, one I hadn’t experienced since childhood —a sense of powerlessness, of being stuck in a situation where nothing I did seemed to make a difference. It’s the kind of helplessness that makes you question: Why even try?

In that moment, I felt sympathy for the younger version of myself who had endured this before. But as an adult and parent, my concern shifted to my child’s future—and to all children who might face a world that feels overwhelming and uncertain.

So, like many of us do when searching for answers, I turned to Google. That’s when I stumbled upon a video that changed everything for me. It was a speech by Dr. Martin Seligman, former President of the American Psychological Association (APA), about Positive Psychology. He shared a study where subjects were exposed to inescapable shocks. Later, they were shown how to stop the shocks, but by then, they’d given up—they didn’t even try to escape. This phenomenon is called learned helplessness.

Think about moments in your own life when you felt powerless, like nothing you did would make a difference. It’s a devastating feeling, and even more heartbreaking when we see our kids starting to experience it, especially in today’s world. I believe this sense of helplessness is a significant factor contributing to the rising rates of depression and hopelessness that both the National Health Service (NHS) and the World Health Organization (WHO) has reported among adolescents since the pandemic.

So what is positive psychology? At its core - it is the scientific study of the strengths, behaviours, and conditions that help individuals and communities to thrive. Its goal is to enhance well-being by identifying what makes life most worth living and provides tools to improve the quality of life through evidence-based practices. When positive psychology first began to emerge, Dr. Seligman and his team started to focus on how to empower people—how to help them regain a sense of control. They developed formal positive psychology and resilience education programs that were implemented across various groups, from elementary school students to the U.S. Army.

The results in schools were astounding. Kids who participated in these programs showed up to a 50% reduction in the likelihood of developing anxiety and depression later in adolescence. These resilience programs created a kind of protective layer, helping many kids cope with life’s challenges.

Now, I want to be clear: genetics and life circumstances can play a significant role in the development of anxiety or depression. But this research gave me hope—hope that we can do some things to help protect our kids as much as we can, or at the very least, provide tools to help us cope.

This story sets the stage for why I returned to school in 2019 in the UK to get my Masters’ degree in Applied Positive Psychology and why I created Mr. Carson Cares. On this site, you’ll find articles, tools, activities, and resources designed to help kids build hope, strengths, resilience, optimism and more. I’m not talking about toxic positivity or labelling emotions as negative. I’m talking about realistic optimism, managing all emotions, tapping into our strengths —a way to help us, and our children, not just survive challenging days, but flourish in life.