Why is it so important to share your feelings?

It helps you to work out your own feelings while building communication with the other person. It shows that we are all human and we all share the same types of feelings and personality traits. We are all struggling with challenges together. Talking about your feelings can give you a new perspective, allowing you to view your emotions differently once they are expressed. The listener can also validate your emotions and provide understanding and another perspective. Sharing your feelings releases them and allows you to process the various emotions behind them. You can feel lighter and less burdened after talking about your feelings.

Sharing your feelings makes you feel heard and understood. It is also a great way to make and sustain meaningful connections with others. Feelings are a universal experience. By sharing your feelings you also learn to identify them, to articulate your thoughts and you also gain insight and develop your own-self awareness. It can feel a bit scary to open up and share feelings, especially if you are not used to it. You can try and practice by writing your feelings first. You can also start on your own, saying things like "I feel angry", "I feel calm", "I feel upset" out loud to yourself to get used to the feeling of expressing yourself.

Communication is so important, and its also crucial so that your feelings don't bubble over and explode. it can help others understand why you react to things the way you do and help improve your relationship with them. it helps you reflect on yourself and understand what you look for in other people. It ensures that you don't lash out since you know what triggers you, because sharing is also a good way to understand them better. Talking about your feelings with others can improve your trust in others and is a good way to bond.

When we bottle things up, our feelings become a 'Jenga Tower'. This is a metaphor I use often to describe my own feelings, and I would love to share this with you now. When we play jenga, we have to build the tower first. Imagine these are the emotions and components that go into your life, there's a lot right? Tower now built, we begin tugging at blocks to see how unstable it can get before it falls. Each one of these pulled blocks represents a stressor in your life, and as you take more and more, the tower begins to wobble. By sharing our feelings with loved ones, therapists or here at 7Cups, we are allowing that tower some extra stability, like when people put their hands around the tower to catch the bricks when they fall. Sharing our feelings can allow for prevention of the falling of the tower, or simply some support and guidance in picking up those pieces when it does tip over. Sharing means you're not the only one in the game, you have a teammate.