How Emotional People Can End Violence Without Getting Hurt
If you identify as a sensitive person, your daily life may feel like a balancing act. You expend a lot of energy trying to shield yourself from the violence and suffering that permeate our world.
Whether it's through avoiding certain news programs or steering conversations away from difficult topics, you are constantly seeking a way to cope with the painful realities you encounter.
For instance, you might turn off a news segment just before it shows images of people affected by war. If a coworker brings up their choice to stop eating meat for ethical reasons, you may switch topics to something lighter.
When you drive past a landfill, your mind might quickly divert from the environmental crisis it represents, as you struggle to process the weight of such issues.
Each day presents its own challenges. Sensitive individuals, whether they see themselves as highly sensitive people or simply as more attuned to their feelings, experience life differently. One significant aspect of this heightened sensitivity is an increased capacity for empathy.
You may find yourself deeply affected when you see or hear about the suffering of others. This emotional reactivity can lead to feeling overwhelmed or unsettled in the face of violence or hardship.
When your feelings become too intense, your nervous system can become dysregulated, causing a sense of unease and insecurity. To restore balance, your instinct is to either eliminate the source of stress or escape from it altogether.
This leads to a complex situation for sensitive individuals in a world filled with distress. You have a strong desire to alleviate suffering, yet this same sensitivity often pushes you to look away from the pain, especially when the scope of the issues feels bigger than you can address.
This creates a disheartening cycle. You may feel morally and emotionally trapped, aware that your inaction might contribute to ongoing suffering, but also feeling powerless to effect real change.
The question then arises: can we find a way to protect ourselves while also working to protect others? This is a fundamental challenge I've faced as a psychologist, advocate, and a sensitive person.
For example, articles and reports might lack trigger warnings. Charitable organizations seeking to grab attention may flood their outreach with graphic images of suffering. Such tactics can feel aggressive and overwhelming, leading to emotional distress.
Additionally, many communications rely on shame to motivate change, operating under the belief that feeling guilty will spur action. This approach can be particularly harmful, as it does not recognize that even good people can engage in harmful practices without being inherently bad.
When we understand this nuance, we can approach these conversations with greater clarity and less emotional turmoil. Instead of feeling overwhelmed or attacked, we can engage more thoughtfully with the difficult challenges we face.