Sadness mixed with humor in a perplexing, chaotic, and confusing way—that’s what the r/FunnyandSad online group over on Reddit is all about. An old-hand on the net, having been founded in November 2013, it has since then grown into a community of nearly 700k members.
The subreddit does exactly what it says on the tin and documents posts from all over the net that are funny and sad at the same time. It’s a melange of laughing through tears (or is that crying while you laugh?) that will show you that life is far more varied and nuanced than the black-and-white we’re used to seeing on the news and on social media.
Sadness is a very natural part of life and we ought to embrace it, instead of running away from it. After all, we can’t be happy-go-lucky all the time (I would know, I tried). And while being sad can even have certain benefits, like improving our memory and judgment, getting stuck in negative thinking patterns and endless loops of sadness isn’t healthy for our mental wellbeing.
I had a quick chat with an expert in the field of psychology about how to identify what these negative thinking patterns look like and how focusing just on our failures, having black or white thinking, and holding ourselves accountable for everything that goes wrong all harm our mental health.
This post may include affiliate links.
Aw Man
It Was Worth A Shot
I Loved Him In Deadpool
Emma Morton, a researcher at the University of British Columbia, told Bored Panda that, for example, what we tend to focus on more, our successes or our failures, can influence our long-term mental health. For instance, hyper-concentrating on all the things that go wrong or could potentially go wrong can trap us in a perpetual loop of self-criticism and anxiety.
This, in turn, can lead to feelings of very low self-esteem and even depression which, in turn, can make us unwilling to ask for help and support even though we might desperately need both. However, there are other ways how we can end up trapped in negative thinking patterns, too.
I'm Fine.. Really
Found On Facebook
10 Year Challenge
“Negative thinking patterns can include only paying attention to failures and ignoring successes, black or white thinking (e.g., ‘If I get anything less than an A+ on this test, I’m a failure’), labeling oneself based on mistakes (e.g., ‘I’m a loser, an idiot’), [and] mind-reading (e.g., ‘Everyone will think I’m a loser for not getting this promotion’),” Emma went into detail with Bored Panda how we can end up being overly harsh with ourselves.
He’s Not Wrong...
Budgeting
My husband and I were curious a few days ago about how much rent we have paid to our current landlord. It's over 160k. The house we just found and got denied for is only 149k, lol
In Dystopia We Were Told To Trust
She continued, adding that another negative pattern includes “holding yourself personally accountable for things that go wrong and attributing successes to luck or the contributions of others (e.g., ‘I only got that award because nobody else applied’).”
Blind Bruh Moment
Mind Blowing How Accurate This Is!!!
He's Right
As such, having unrealistic expectations of what we’re capable of and being unreasonably demanding of ourselves can lead to “feelings of depression and worthlessness” that in turn “make it harder to reach out for help.” So while it’s perfectly fine to feel sadness, we all need to know when to ask for a helping hand if we find ourselves constantly stuck with only negative thoughts.
Mysterious Ways
Technically he only had eleven true friends. The other one was a toxic backstabber who literally sold him out.
I Feel We Are There Already
Well, It's True Isn't?
Hearing Impaired
You’re Not From Around Here Are You
"Cries In Millenial"
We’re Screwed
We All Panic Sometimes
Group Projects Are The Worst
Sad Truth
they are literally permanently embedded into your head, theres no getting rid of them
Uplifting Quote
Useless Job
So Close Yet So Far
That's Where It Began
London
Please
Totally. I am now halfway through my second health degree and my father still tells me what medical advice he got from the TV, and when I say, "No that is not correct info" he gets irritated, "I watched the thing on TV!!" Yes coz 6-8 years education on the subject has taught me absolutely nothing....What can you do...still love him...
Is Being Short Really That Bad
Sad Truth
And Don’t Forget Student Loans
It's also because in the US you have to pay thousands of dollars in medical bills for prenatal care and labour and delivery, even if nothing goes wrong. You also get 2 weeks maternity leave, if you're lucky. A lot of people literally cannot afford to *have* a baby, let alone raise a child.
America: "Work yourselves to death. Do all the overtime you can get to afford to live! Bankrupt when you're older because all that work broke your body! Good little human."
Load More Replies...
Don't get me wrong, it sucks that people are so broke that they can't afford kids, but Earth could do with a little population shrinkage.
The world population grows by roughly 83 million people each year or 1.1%. We're at 7.8 billion people right now. We *need* to curb population growth if we're going to survive. Critical mass will hit sooner rather than later if we keep up the current pace. Many countries need a major campaign of birth control and education.
what kind of bullshit encourages people to increase population?! Population is the single most decisive factor in climate change
It's inescapable that you need an ever increasing working population to take care of longer living older population
Load More Replies...
F**k you S**t ton of Millennials are working their asses off to save this planet
Load More Replies... 
I don't understand, please explain? 'Replacement level' is jsut a technical term that describes the rate of births required to maintain a steady population. Unless you're suggesting that nobody should ever die, which is the only way that the replacement number becomes zero, then this number automatically exists.
Load More Replies...
FFS, another dogdamned thing to blame on millennials. Shut the hell up, ypulse. If our civilization wasn't literally a dystopia, people would probably be more willing to breed to satisfy your weird belief that breeding is ultra important. Humanity isn't going extinct from lack of reproduction.
Yes, makes a change when they usually blame the "boomers", like everything that happened in the US was their fault, not the governments etc.
Load More Replies... I mean... A decline in population over a generation in any country is not such a bad thing
WTF? "Replacement level"?? How about just agree with letting human beings go one step beyond natural selection and choosing to make the change they wish to see? I can't believe that after all the bi**hing and complaining about population explosion over the past 50 years, that a reduction of population isn't celebrated. I guess there is always someone who has to complain.
Our hospital bill for our daughter who is now 9 was near $6000. My wife had a c-section after 19 hours of labor. Because she was in labor so long they kept my wife for two days and kept our daughter in the NICU for 3. So 1: we got a bill for $6K and 2: we had to abandon our new born for a whole day because we couldn't take her home with us until the 3 days were up. Hospitals know how to screw you on purpose.
Also because we realized there’s no rule that says you have to have a child if you don’t want.
I think the earth will benefit from a lower population. Nature wise anyway.
My grandchildren get to go back to daycare sometime soon. Parents about passed out when finding daycare. First child is over $900 per month and they have two. Don't know how anyone can handle those prices unless you're making six figures. Can't imagine trying to figure out daycare for people making minimum wage. Scary, going to be a lot of too young kids left by themselves.
Who in their right mind would bring another person into this mess we've made.
4 years later they are still spouting this nonsense. Isn't like we are running low on humans on this planet. I hope said humans read articles like this and see it for what it is. Propaganda.
This is a good thing. The world is crazy overpopulated as it is, way beyond its carrying capacity.
You have one of the highest mortality rates in the western world when it comes to pregnancy and labor and you are the only ones without paid maternity leave. Your health care and education system is flawed at best... Why in earth should a woman put herself through that? And don't even get me started on how you treat single parents or how affordable your housing is. But best country in the world ever, sure.
That's why developed countries all over the world need to constantly import both cheap and skilled labour, to keep the economy humming at a brisk, growing rate. The citizen population is unable to reproduce fast enough, and often expect higher pay. To understand why things are the way they are, one has to stop thinking from their own benefit's perspective, but from the state's/elite's benefit perspective. Why should a medical corp offer low cost care when they are allowed by the government of the day to wring max profits out of the masses? Same for landlords and financial institutions that lend money to the masses. Unfortunately, people are often treated like sheep, for the top wolves to feed upon.
And because people are waking up and realising they don't need to have kids if they don't want to. No one owes any society any kids.
Exactly!!! I’m so tired of the baby boomers screwing everything up! Frankly they don’t deserve grandchild and the ones that do have grandkids don’t care about them they just care about their wants and needs over their kids and grandkids. The baby boomers disregard for life is going to back fire as in no one to care for them when their old. I think it will be a good day they will get what they deserve.
The biggest mistake my generation made was raising your generation.
Load More Replies...
Or maybe because they likely will end up suffering the consequences of everyone before then ruining the earth.
- have babies!! - pay me a living wage - no living wage just babies
pfft here in Canada I make $20 and pay $625 for my share and live in a good part of town
It costs as much to go to the hospital to have a baby as a year of tuition in some community colleges.
Making crap wages and then you only (if you are lucky) get 2 weeks maternity, then you have to send your kid to daycare and pay the daycare almost your entire paycheck...
boomers be like: "let's make the cost of living tens of thousands of dollars per person and put a price tag on a birthing suite, then complain when millennials don't have kids."
Replacement level just means zero population shrinkage.
Load More Replies...
If only everyone were smart enough to not have kids because they couldn't afford it .Y'all aren't having kids because you're smart and a little selfish. I'm not hating , the idea of childless life seems like heaven to me at times lol. You guys are the spoiled generation we just raised. My kids were/are so coddled and spoiled. They don't want kids. They want to travel and play video games. You can't pin everything on the non existent living wage
Oh my you sound like an entitled baby boomer. The boomers are more selfish generation blessed. Ya had it all growing up in a economy where you could afford to get houses and cars. Y’all taught the millennials to be selfish like yourselves. One thing is for sure it damn hard taking care of kids by oneself let alone with a spouse and no help whatsoever from baby boomer parents to help grandchildren. I have two small children I’m married and we do it all! I’m sick of this y’all are selfish you guys need to have kids B.B.’s. My family whined about it until we had kids they barley see their grandkids maybe once a year if that!if we don’t go take them to see them and that’s with us working to provide for our kids so NO silver spoon in our mouth thank you. I grew up poor but one of my parents has much & never helped me. They were irresponsible financially thanks to the their selfishness. I have dealt with so much and it’s the flawed me mentality of the boomer generation “it’s all about me”.
Load More Replies...
Yeah...this is one thing I'm sick of hearing. The New York Times put it the other day as: American women opting not to have kids for their career. Like, no you blind bats. ALL young American people are putting off having kids. And it's not, for their career. It's because they don't yet have enough money or freedom to give their kids good lives and still have a good life themselves. Pay people! Goodness gracious. My dad thought it was "social engineering," which I understand why he feels that way, but it also shows me how out of touch older generations are with how the economy has affected younger demographics. The economy has been nothing but bad news for like 20 years straight! We never had the flourishing ease that some of our parents/grandparents may have experienced. There is no sign of relief. Just selfish and dysfunctional governments and corporations pillaging the land.
Wrong. You are assuming that everyone WANTS children, when it's not the case. Plenty people simply don't want children at all.
Load More Replies...
Pay a living wage without inflating living costs at the same time, and we will cease to have this issue.
Millennials can make a million bucks a year doing Minecraft videos on youtube, and all they do is whine about the lack of jobs. And of course, I was living like a king when I pulled 3.35 and hour at McDonalds.
Whiny bastards. Mexico pays 12 usd per day and rent is crazy high and still have kids and make it work
F**k off, Karen. They pay more in tax than you ever have
Load More Replies...
"Get to use..."?! In a perfect world, *everyone* would "get to use" their own body autonomy to do anything they want with their own bodies
Load More Replies...Motivation Is The Leading Cause Of Death On The China/Nepal Border
Life Can Be So Rewarding
So bloody true. The last couple of years has been one hit after the other and we aren't classed as poor. Struggling yes, poor no.
I Don't Know If I Would Trust Him With My Pets
"Millenials Are All Lazy And Entitled!"
Student Loans Put You Through College But Put You Through Debt For Much Longer!!
It Was So Beautiful
Welcome To The Show
I am a millennial (vowels are too expensive to rent) ' 'm ' m'll'n''l? (Ma'am you can't afford those apostrophes) mmllnl :(
Cause Your In New York
Spent $11.75 Growing Tomatoes This Year. Here's My Whole Harvest!
My single beet was a little bigger, but I planted Aton of veggies - got sick and all it takes is one day of neglect for everything to die in AZ summer temps (I’m new at this). I’m surprised your little tomato turned red so soon! Don’t they stay green in early growth? But what do I know - I get oddball things in my “garden” regularly. Going to try a fall planting this year. Your tomato is adorable. Keep trying!
I Wish
I Know It Hurts Sometimes But You'll Get Over It
Note: this post originally had 59 images. It’s been shortened to the top 45 images based on user votes.
This is the most diverse post I have ever seen- stupid stuff, dark jokes, sad stuff and everything, very confusing indeed
facts for some ppl, maybe confusing for others, depends on which country u come from
I think they mean it's confusing because you don't know whether to laugh or cry.
Load More Replies...
Clearly BP is not for you. Maybe go watch Tucker Carlson rant about "the left", or Ben Shapiro ask why crime hasn't been banned.
Load More Replies... 
This is the most diverse post I have ever seen- stupid stuff, dark jokes, sad stuff and everything, very confusing indeed
facts for some ppl, maybe confusing for others, depends on which country u come from
I think they mean it's confusing because you don't know whether to laugh or cry.
Load More Replies... Clearly BP is not for you. Maybe go watch Tucker Carlson rant about "the left", or Ben Shapiro ask why crime hasn't been banned.
Load More Replies... 