I’ve wondered this for a long time. I am someone that really loves life. I know that sounds stupid and trite…but it’s true. I have always been someone who has been very joyful. This isn’t something I make up or use to hide how I really feel. Because trust me, if you know me well, you know I don’t have many filters or boundaries and I will absolutely tell you when I am struggling with something. But even amidst my struggles I feel joyful. Today at my internship I went on a tangent at the end of our group supervision meeting about how thankful I was for my fellow intern friends. I spoke straight from my heart and my joy was apparent in my speech. My friends smiled at me and were appreciative of my acknowledgement of my love for them. When we were talking afterwards, one of my friends and I were laughing about how it was funny that I “get overcome with these feelings of mania” when I honestly express my feelings. We were both talking about how my “childlike expression of love” never really fits the vibe of our meetings or the other psychologists around us. This debriefing made me ponder how quick we are to point the finger and to diagnose extreme emotions when in reality that’s all they are sometimes. Don’t get me wrong, episodes of mania and depression really happen to people; I am not denying or minimizing mental illness. But I also think sometimes someone’s genuineness and authenticity, like vulnerably expressing a real emotion, is far too taboo in our society. I’m not going to let it stop me. When I am overcome with joy I will continue to share it and not censor myself.
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