How I Write Anita PapasI wake up every morning loving my life and loving myself. I appreciate every little detail and everything that I have. I’ve been positive ever since I was young, long before I studied psychology at university. Since being positive has always been second nature for me, I was surprised to discover that not everyone is like that naturally. I don’t have a typical routine and every day is different. I have two kids, a husband and a home to take care of. But I always set time aside to take care of myself, such as reading, cooking and going for walks. I wrote my first book when I was busy living my life and under no special circumstances. I’m not a writer so I chose to write the way I think and talk.

Readers have said that they feel like I am sitting next to them, telling them a story. I address and engage my readers with practical tips that anyone can adopt. My writing process was quite erratic but it came naturally, and throughout that year I would write in several environments. ‘The Positive You!’ is intentionally a shorter self-help book that is realistic and accessible so you don’t get lost along the way. I loved writing it and now I still enjoy rereading it; I get an instant boost and pick-me-up. The process didn’t end and I am working on ‘The Positive Us!’ now, since much of our existence is based on our environment and relationships with others. The ideas were always there and at first, it was like writing a memo as I include much of my personal life.

The important thing was to always have my notepad with me so whenever an idea for a paragraph comes to me, I would be ready to jot everything down. I wrote in the car, in bed, in front of a blasting TV, my screaming kids and while having a conversation with my husband. Sometimes when I needed to be alone, I would wake up in the middle of the night and write continuously from 2am until 5am. We all have our moments when we’re feeling under the weather but having a happy life begins from within. I am a clinical psychologist and my advice doesn’t go past the deaf ears of my clinic walls. I wanted to0 reach out to more people, especially in Lebanon where there is a lot of negativity. I wanted people to wake up and realise that they have lives worth living happily. Natalie Fox Anita Papas is a clinical psychologist.

‘The Positive You!’ is her first book, available in all major bookstores for LL25,000.