How To Feel | The Odyssey Online
Start writing a post
Relationships

You Don't Get To Decide How People React To What You Do

Emotions don't have rules, so stop telling people how they can and cannot feel.

Rachel G
Dec 12, 2018
East Carolina University
75
You Don't Get To Decide How People React To What You Do
https://unsplash.com/photos/tXz6g8JYYoI

This seems so self-explanatory, but clearly, it isn't. I've seen a lot of posts lately about how Millennials and Gen-Y are too sensitive and how we can't take a joke. Well, guess what? YOU DON'T GET TO DECIDE HOW I REACT.

If I see something on Facebook that's sexist, even if it's a joke, I am allowed to be offended. I am allowed to defend my gender and defend myself. I am allowed to be angered at the constant oppression of women that is often masked by jokes and backhanded compliments and side comments. You do not get to tell me "oh, it's just a joke, relax." I will not relax. It is my responsibility to stand up for myself and other women. The intention of the comment is irrelevant, it's about what the message of it is and I am allowed to feel however I feel.

You also don't get to tell me how your actions affect me. If you are my friend and you take seven hours to respond to a text message that warrants a response, but I see that you've been posting on social media, I am allowed to be mad. I am allowed to be irritated. The same is true if you blow me off, even if it's for legitimate reasons. I am allowed to be upset. It may not be directed at you, but I am still allowed to be upset that you canceled on me.

Also, if you're my significant other and you say or do something that hurts my feelings or disappoints me, I am allowed to feel that way. If I go out of my way when you have had a bad day to make you feel better, but you ignore that- I am allowed to be upset.

I am allowed to be disappointed and to need some space. You don't get to tell me that I'm overreacting or that I'm being crazy just having emotions.

I am also allowed to feel emotions that aren't necessarily traditional in certain scenarios. I am allowed to be relieved when someone who's had cancer and been in pain for years on end, passes away. I am allowed to be happy that they are no longer suffering. I am also allowed to feel grief that they are gone. I am allowed to feel whatever I feel.

So, stop telling me and others to feel a certain way. I am allowed to have emotion. It is NORMAL to have emotions. It is NORMAL to feel things. I am allowed to feel whatever I feel.

Emotions do not have boundaries. Emotions don't have rules. So, stop trying to give people emotional rules to follow.

Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
Featured

AI music threatens creativity

The Soul of Sound: How AI Challenges Human Expression in Music

134301
Humans and robots face off in a rock band battle with guitars and drums, under dynamic lighting.
StableDiffusion

In an age where artificial intelligence can mimic the voice of Freddie Mercury or reimagine pop hits as synthwave ballads, a new frontier has emerged — one that blurs the line between innovation and erosion. While AI offers undeniable benefits in technical domains, its intrusion into creative arts, especially music, raises urgent questions. Not just about copyright, but about culture, education, and the very soul of artistic expression.


Keep Reading...Show less
ai generated music
Entertainment

Every Girl Needs To Listen To 'She Used To Be Mine' By Sara Bareilles

These powerful lyrics remind us how much good is inside each of us and that sometimes we are too blinded by our imperfections to see the other side of the coin, to see all of that good.

Miami University
453668
Every Girl Needs To Listen To 'She Used To Be Mine' By Sara Bareilles

The song was sent to me late in the middle of the night. I was still awake enough to plug in my headphones and listen to it immediately. I always did this when my best friend sent me songs, never wasting a moment. She had sent a message with this one too, telling me it reminded her so much of both of us and what we have each been through in the past couple of months.

Keep Reading...Show less
music
Entertainment

Why Your Astrological Sign May Not Match Your Personality

We are all more than just one sign.

SUNY Plattsburgh
363825
Zodiac wheel with signs and symbols surrounding a central sun against a starry sky.

What's your sign? It's one of the first questions some of us are asked when approached by someone in a bar, at a party or even when having lunch with some of our friends. Astrology, for centuries, has been one of the largest phenomenons out there. There's a reason why many magazines and newspapers have a horoscope page, and there's also a reason why almost every bookstore or library has a section dedicated completely to astrology. Many of us could just be curious about why some of us act differently than others and whom we will get along with best, and others may just want to see if their sign does, in fact, match their personality.

Keep Reading...Show less
astrology
Entertainment

20 Song Lyrics To Put A Spring Into Your Instagram Captions

"On an island in the sun, We'll be playing and having fun"

UNC Greensboro
329821
Person in front of neon musical instruments; glowing red and white lights.
Photo by Spencer Imbrock on Unsplash

Whenever I post a picture to Instagram, it takes me so long to come up with a caption. I want to be funny, clever, cute and direct all at the same time. It can be frustrating! So I just look for some online. I really like to find a song lyric that goes with my picture, I just feel like it gives the picture a certain vibe.

Here's a list of song lyrics that can go with any picture you want to post!

Keep Reading...Show less
spring
Relationships

The Importance Of Being A Good Person

An open letter to the good-hearted people.

Sacred Heart University
577819
Chalk drawing of scales weighing "good" and "bad" on a blackboard.
WP content

Being a good person does not depend on your religion or status in life, your race or skin color, political views or culture. It depends on how good you treat others.

We are all born to do something great. Whether that be to grow up and become a doctor and save the lives of thousands of people, run a marathon, win the Noble Peace Prize, or be the greatest mother or father for your own future children one day. Regardless, we are all born with a purpose. But in between birth and death lies a path that life paves for us; a path that we must fill with something that gives our lives meaning.

Keep Reading...Show less
good person

Trending Topics

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments