Express Yourself in Five Easy Ways

Posted on 18. Jul, 2007 by George in College Life, Creativity, Self Development

Most of us find it hard to express our feelings, because voicing out what we feel is difficult for most. Oftentimes, when we try to say what we want to say, we end up being tongue-tied, misunderstood, or worse, we end up saying the wrong thing. So instead of risking  exposing ourselves to humiliation or rejection, we tend to keep everything to ourselves. Keeping our feelings to ourselves could harm us health-wise. Bottling up emotions has psychological and physical consequences: things that we would  do well to avoid. 

If you do not want to risk getting rejected, there are ways for you to let go of your emotions without needing to talk to anyone. Below are some suggestions on what you can do to release those bottled-up emotions, minus the criticism you might get if you open up to someone else.

Start a Journal. Keep a journal on hand whenever you need to discharge any emotional turmoil. With today’s technology era, where writing using a paper diary is considered passé, creating a blog or online journal is the rage. This is a fun, albeit more public alternative to pen and paper. Whichever you choose, the important thing is that you use the journal as a tool for catharsis. Writing down what you feel purges you of everything you’ve been keeping inside. If you are a person who really craves privacy, don’t leave your (paper) journal lying around. If you chose to make a blog, don’t give your blog’s URL or address to anyone. If you are about to talk about a very private, very sensitive issue, it is advisable to use a diary instead, or a blog that has an option for private posts or password-locked content. James W. Pennebaker PhD, author of the book “Opening Up,” stressed that “If we can create a cohesive personal narrative of our lives and if we can link up our emotions with specific events, then we have the power to take control of how those emotions and events affect our lives.” 

Engage in Creative Dramatics. This is most advisable if you have your own room. Just face a mirror and talk to yourself on how you feel at the moment. You can even pretend you are talking to the object of your emotions. Say what you want to say, and censor nothing. Who knows, it just may hone your acting skills.

Write a Letter. Are you dying to let this guy know how you feel? Or do you want to confront your parents about how bad you feel about their stringent rules? If you can’t muster enough guts to talk to these significant others face to face, why not write a letter addressed to them?  Say everything you want to say then seal and keep it, unless you genuinely want to let them know how you feel. 

Unleash Your Creative Side. If you can’t say it, write it. Write it in prose or poetry. However you want to express your feelings, just go and write! You just may have an inner Ernest Hemingway or Elizabeth Barrett Browning in you? According to a study by Boysun and Smyth, “The simple act of writing about bad times can be a potent, and low cost, method of relieving pain and symptoms of chronic illnesses.” Whoever thought writing could be close to a panacea?. 

Finding ways to release your emotions in a way that need not involve another is limited only by your imagination. If you are the religious type, and your beliefs involve prayer, you can talk to your Supreme Being about your feelings. If you are in a belief that does not have a concept of a Higher Being, then you can meditate your strong emotions away. The bottom line is that you have an outlet for your emotions. Don’t wait for your emotions to be displaced on someone else or for it to eat you up. Express them, and move on. You can never go wrong with that.