Is talking about feelings still taboo?

  For a long time, showing emotion was seen as a sign of weakness. Men who cried were labelled as weak, women who spoke about how they felt were called dramatic, and anyone who expressed hurt was accused of playing the victim. The result? Entire generations hiding what they feel, swallowing pain, frustration, hurt - even love - all to avoid seeming vulnerable.
  I grew up watching that contrast at home. My mother was always very expressive - she’d cry in front of anyone, never had a problem showing how she felt. My father, on the other hand, I never once saw shed a tear. Not during films, not at funerals. And I grew up with both models in front of me: one where emotion meant freedom, and one where it meant restraint.
  The truth is, personally, I’ve always found it a bit h
ard to talk about feelings, as I’ve mentioned in previous articles. But one thing I’ve learned - and believe in deeply - is the importance of communication. If something hurts or bothers me, I speak up. There’s no way to resolve conflict without dialogue. And yet, I’ve lost important relationships precisely because there wasn’t any.
  My best friend - the one I met online and shared so much with - vanished from my life because he never said anything when something upset him. And I can’t read minds. Another example was a close friend who felt hurt by something that happened and kept it to herself for months. I only found out when I invited her to my birthday, and she declined, saying there was still something unresolved. I was open to talking, but she never took that step. In the end, we drifted apart. And all of that could’ve been avoided with a simple conversation.
  That’s why I say: talking about feelings is still taboo - but it shouldn’t be. Because when we swallow our emotions just to keep up appearances or avoid conflict, we start bottling things up that eventually explode. And worse: we end up losing people simply because we didn’t have the courage to talk to them.
  And honestly, I do understand that with certain people, it’s scary to speak up - some are more sensitive, some take everything personally. But I’ve always been very upfront about this. I always told the people around me: “If you ever have a problem with me, just tell me straight.” I’m totally fine with that. I say a lot of things in life - if I managed to never hurt anyone in the middle of all those words, I’d be a god. It’s natural to lose our filter here and there. Sometimes it even comes down to how the other person interprets it. So it makes no sense to me when someone gets hurt and says nothing. Just like it doesn’t make sense for me to be hurt by something and keep it all in.
  Expressing how we feel isn’t a sign of weakness - it’s an act of courage. And above all, it’s a crucial step toward healthy relationships, whether with ourselves or with others.
So… do you talk about how you feel with the people closest to you?