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Key Takeaways
Aerosmith sang about it.
So did Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey, Destinys Child, and countless other artists.
They sang songs aboutemotionssomething all people can relate to.
Sarah Mason / Getty Images
Although showing emotion is natural, society has historically viewed expressing them as a sign of weakness.
The idea that women are biologically more emotional has been debunked by researchers.
Emotion is not gendered.
But it can be conditioned, she adds.
While women are often freer with showing their feelings, emotions obviously arent just conveyed by females.
They also arent made to be stuffed or suppressed.
Emotions are important, viable expressions of who we are as individuals.
What Human Emotion Are You?
Thisemotion quizwas medically reviewed by Rachel Goldman, PhD, FTOS.
We cant hold it in.
But we also get that there are places where its deemed less acceptable to become emotional.
Tom Hanks famously said, Theres no crying in baseball in the movie, A League of Their Own.
While comedic, it emphasized the point of hiding emotion in certain parameters.
Crying at work is also an unwritten rule for women.
If you cry, it sends a message that you are unprofessional and cant handle the job.
They know being emotional all the time isnt productive.
But holding them in is problematic.
You cant necessarily control how you feel.
Its also beneficial to normalize expressing emotions.
Parents should talk to their children about being able to share how theyre feeling.
It devalues the power of owning the fullness of how you feel.
The issue is not men crying, it’s society’s unwarranted definition of strength.
Thankfully, society is becoming more open to the connection between mental health and sharing emotions.
It also shows that its okay not to be okay, for you and for others.
Reducing any form of stigma always starts with you.
Let go of flawed definitions and patriarchal expectations.
What This Means For Your
We all have emotions.
We will all deal with them in one form or another.
Trampe D, Quoidbach J, Taquet M.Emotions in everyday life.
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