Have you ever felt like you are sad but you don't know why? Have you ever felt crying but couldn't? Have you ever felt empty, yet, you have everything, friendship circle and family?
Yeah me too.
Emptiness is a hollow feeling/emotion in your chest where you feel like there is a void that can't be filled.
Sometimes, people feel empty or emotional numbness usually associated with anxiety and depression.
Emotional emptiness/numb is sometimes mistaken as Alexithymia. Alexithymia is a condition when a person has difficulty identifying and expressing emotions. However, it is NOT a mental health disorder.
When I wake up in the morning feeling distant,rigid, humorless, having difficulty identifying my feelings or detatched from reality I know something is wrong but I don't know what it is or why.
Some psychiatrists explain this feeling as depersonalization disorder. This comes when a person feels betrayed by their own lives,life goes by without being a part of it because they they are numb or feel too introverted to make good decisions of what happens around them
A brain is like a computer. A computer has both hardware and software, whichcan symbolise the brain and nervous system as hardware and emotions and feelings as software. But unlike the computer, human brain is difficult to predict. But there are a few facts to decipher what causes emotional emptiness/numbness.
Social medias. Social media is addictive and for most people (NOT everyone), it shuts the real world. I sound conservative,right? But trust me, that dopamine rush you get when you log in and refresh to see new notifications or when you confront someone over having the wrong opinion makes you feel attached to the virtual world more than the real world. When you live in a virtual world more, you tend to see a lot of sufferings which at some point makes you feel numb to digest all. I know social medias are cool and essential but your happiness and mental health lives in the real world.
Anxiety and depression. This is a serious matter and we don't give it much thoughts. When we feel stressed or kinda depressed we try to make ourselves feel better. Me, I change my sheets, I take a bath, I eat chocolates or treat myself with a favorite meal that I miss but this doesn't help. We actually don't talk about it because we really don't know what's wrong or it might be a small thing like an exam or a job interviewthat is giving you gases and when you try to talk about it, your friends tell you to "sleep it off" or "don't worry". This constant worry makes you feel sad, more than sad. Empty. When you feel like this seek proffesional help, psychiatrists or counseling.
Feeling like you don't have a purpose. I sometimes sit and wonder what life will be like, how many kids I should raise, how will I be successful? But I don't really know the real meaning of life or my destiny or what will happen if I don't be successful in whatever will be my career. No matter how most of us try to get career guidance or seek proffesional advices about meaning of life, it doesn't curb our worries. And this continuous nagging at our brains affect our emotions. The way we continue thinking about our future, which are hard to predict, makes our present miserable and unenjoyable. I know a lot of people who is struck by this need to know their life's purpose and makes them empty or drained emotional intensity. If you are feeling like you don't have a purpose, read "the Sedona method" by Hale Dowskin. I myself I'm not a fan of self help books but the Sedona method is worth a try.
In a nutshell, this article isn't backed by any research(except the book and a few facts about Alexithymia). Otherwise, I wrote undergoing some uncertainties in my life and I tried asking myself why I feel empty. You have your own reasons why you feel empty at times; Friendships, love life, childhood traumas and others I don't even know. Just know that EMPTINESS is a feeling too and you don't have to surpress your emotions. Because if you surpress your emotions one day u'll wake up and it'll be too late which may lead to stress-related illnesses.
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