Comments on: When You Feel Emotionally Numb, Do This To Feel More Alive

By: Heera

Heera — Mon, 20 Jan 2025 08:17:52 +0000

Emotional numbness is a coping mechanism for not confronting one’s emotions, trying to shut down, and neglecting the feelings that make one overwhelmed. Though it is normal when short-lived, it becomes a pretty unhealthy thing to do in the long run. Restricting oneself from feeling and confronting the emotions one feels at the moment can add up to not functioning correctly and hinder one’s ability to feel genuine.

By: Abhimanyu Singh

Abhimanyu Singh — Sat, 06 Apr 2024 06:12:07 +0000

Thank you for sharing this beneficial post. It’s become essential in today’s time to spread awareness about emotional numbness as not many know about it and how to deal with it. It is a mental condition which may appear to be helpful for coping with trauma and one’s emotions in the short run , but can impact health adversely in the long run, making timely help essential.

By: Hailey

Hailey — Tue, 18 Oct 2022 20:22:59 +0000

Hi Jonice,

I have recently been broken up with and it’s my first real relationship. I have been in it for ten months, and he all of a sudden tells me that he lost feelings. I seemed to be fine over the weekend; enjoying homecoming and family time, but yesterday, I had a sudden feeling of emotional numbness. I laugh at stuff as a habitual reaction, but in reality, I feel no enjoyment at all. I feel no happiness or sadness. I can’t even cry. My appetite hasn’t been great either, so that certainly doesn’t help. But the stuff that would usually send me off doesn’t even bother me much anymore. There are some people in my class who throw stuff around the classroom and play high-pitched sounds my teacher can’t hear that hurts everyone else’s ears. I also can’t seem to focus or find motivation for my school work and being a perfectionist and someone who used to really stress about my grades, this doesn’t seem healthy. I have people who are telling me that it will pass, but what happens if it doesn’t pass soon enough? What should I do?

By: Clare

Clare — Thu, 24 Jun 2021 23:08:17 +0000

Hi, what if you can’t remember or reimagine emotions at all. I realised I have been emotionally disconnected with family and friends for a very long time, although I can’t remember a lot of memories, I can’t recall if I have ever felt love for anyone.

By: Audra

Audra — Mon, 21 Jun 2021 13:30:18 +0000

Severe trauma in one’s childhood or at any stage can cause that as well. The numbness can be also because feeling at all is too overwhelming. It really can be engaged when you run into a living environment and relationships after having lived in severely unhealthy ones. It’s very hard to dial down and listen to those feelings for a season as the body has blocked them as it has determined feeling them is to much and will shut you down from doing what you must to keep going. This can also be experienced for neurodivergent people’s as there senses are overwhelming and literally are painful. It is a string to layers and layers of experiences and circumstances and relationship wounds. With love n time and living in safe places with loved ones it can heal over time. Always remember the one going thru this isn’t being difficult… they are deeply wounded and hurting and having a very difficult time. Lots of presence, loving and just being there… They may go thru a very large range of extreme highs and lows when this breaks.. love em thru it . The person on the other side of it will be worth all you go thru.

By: Jonice

Jonice — Sun, 17 Jan 2021 19:55:50 +0000

In reply to Kriste. Dear Kriste, this boy is fortunate to have you as family. It's so great how you're trying to help him. I encourage you to see if you can get him an appointment with a therapist. This is more than you'll be able to sort out on your own. Other than that, overall, being accepting and validating and caring and available are the best things you can do for him.

By: Kriste

Kriste — Fri, 15 Jan 2021 15:56:20 +0000

Dr. Jonice,
I have a teen boy who is a part of our family. He has been emotionally neglected, diagnosed adhd but not medicated for years. He has cycles where he says he feels nothing for anyone or anything. He claims to be dead inside, he sees not future for himself. He attempts to attach meaning to these loss of feelings and starts blowing up and ending his close relationships believing that he has lost feelings only to later discover he does care deeply and he made a huge mistake. He experienced a death two days after Christmas and he has again transitioned to emotional numbness, anger and rage outbursts.
His family has not made getting him the tools to deal with the adhd a priority, and they attempt to discipline the behavior and acting-out out of him.
They also have made his relationship with our family a source of contention. Which has been a huge source of pain for him. He has tried to walk away from our family several times to make his family happy only to be miserable and he comes back.
We are trying to help him the best we can but our options and ability to intervene are limited. We know we are the main source of emotional support for him and when he has been out of our life he spirals out of control and goes down a bad path. How can we help him recognize when this is happening? What tools can we give him to get reconnected to his feelings and emotions when this happens? What does he need to say to himself when his feelings turn off to keep him from destroying his relationships? I read somewhere the feelings in this state are not the truth they are simply misdirections from a brain that is not functioning correctly. Is this true? I told him any sudden shift or departure from your long standing feelings can not be trusted. So don’t start making rash decisions in that state. Any direction you can give me would be very helpful. Thanks

By: Jonice

Jonice — Sun, 19 Jul 2020 23:56:07 +0000

In reply to Yotha. Dear Yotha, you're doing great things toward your recovery. Just keep doing them! Healing is a step by step process and requires commitment. Maybe think less about the "end results" and more about the process as you are going through it.

By: Yotha

Yotha — Sat, 18 Jul 2020 04:36:08 +0000

Dr. Jonice, I read your 2 books and felt that I understand a lot about my past and myself. I answered yes to all your CEN questions. I loved your books so much because I can identified myself with Zachs, William, Tyrone, Josh and found the Fatal flaw to be very true about me.

I am really grateful for your books and especially this article. I felt so alive. So painful. It never occured to me that I heavily relied on instant snacks, videogames, movies, travelling as a coping throughout my childhood and never realized that they were unhealthy for me, because my family gave me the money or stuffs (whenever I get good grades, results) specifically to solve my emotional problems this way. Most of my friends at school were doing the same thing, and so I thought this was the only way to go.

Fortunately, I found your books and fortunately there is a mentor I can reached out for and she really listens and understand me, to a level my parents cannot. I’m working my way through all my CEN problems. Thank you very much. Thank you.

I have one question though, will I ever get to that new me? Currently I felt like I’m in progress, like every day is a constant battle with all these programming. Sometimes when I happen to live a really good day I’m proud of (very aware of my emotions, having a good mood throughout the day, doing all the self care and exercising) I just thought that that’s the end. I’ve accomplished a recovery. At least I’ve lived one good day exactly the way non CEN people live. But I wonder to myself, do I have to do this again tomorrow and throughout all of my life?

Sincerely.

By: Jonice

Jonice — Sat, 25 Apr 2020 18:38:17 +0000

In reply to Yvonne. Dear Yvonne, I strongly encourage you to talk with a therapist about this. Check the Find A CEN Therapist List on this website. It's important!