08 Apr Mentionable is Manageable
“I cried last night,” my coworker told me.
“I’m having a hard time with all of this,” someone mentioned on a conference call.
“I’m disappointed my plans had to change,” my friend posted on social media.
In the past week, I’ve noticed many people are talking about their feelings more openly. If there is a silver lining in this, it’s nice to think we can be more transparent about how we feel. There is something empowering about naming our emotions.
Yet, I have also noticed after people mention their emotion of sadness or grief or disappointment, they often add their feelings about their feelings:
“…but I have to put it in perspective since I know others have it way harder,” my coworker continued.
“…it’s nothing compared to what people working in the hospitals are going through,” the person continued on a conference call.
“…in the big picture I shouldn’t feel this way,” one of my friends continued on her social media post.
I wonder why we continue.
There’s nothing wrong with stopping at the first feeling. We don’t need to negate it or minimize it. We can talk about the fullness of that emotion as we experience it because it belongs to us.
Mister Rogers taught us as children that anything human is mentionable, and anything mentionable is manageable. When we talk about our feelings, they begin to feel less overwhelming.
So let’s keep trying. Let’s allow ourselves to feel what’s inside of us and talk about those feelings with those we trust. It’s good to acknowledge what we are going through. We don’t need to fight or reject our feelings by comparing our experience to others’. Let’s embrace the fullness of our feelings, share them with each other and find healthy ways to cope.