FINDING THE WORDS FOR EMOTIONS
Is it really possible to tell someone else what one feels? - Leo Tolstoy, Anna Karenina
When you say ‘I’m happy’, what sort of happy are you? Are you ‘The sun is shining, it’s a lovely day’ happy, ‘My team just won’ happy, or is it more like ‘The medical tests are all clear’ happy?
Often we’re not very clear or even sure about how we’re feeling. For example, you may have an experience which leaves you thinking ‘I just feel awful!’ Awful is not an emotion, but it may be the closest you get to describing how you feel.
Finding the right word or words to explain how you feel isn’t always straightforward or easy. And whatever you might mean when you use the word ‘happy’ to describe how you’re feeling, it might not ...
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