I don’t always feel sad.
I don’t always feel anxious either.
Mostly, I just don’t feel much of anything.
Things happen and I know how I should react, but the feeling doesn’t really show up. Good things pass by without much impact. Bad things land, but only lightly. Like there’s a gap between me and whatever’s going on.
That can be worrying. You start wondering if something’s wrong with you. If you’ve stopped caring. If this is just how you are now.
Usually, it isn’t.
Feeling numb often comes after too much of something. Too much stress. Too much responsibility. Too much emotional noise for too long. When you don’t get space to deal with things, your system sometimes copes by shutting the door a bit.
Not forever. Just enough to get through.
It’s not always obvious when it starts. You don’t wake up one day numb. It creeps in. You keep going, keep managing, and only later realise that everything feels a bit distant.
For some people it feels like emptiness. For others it’s flatness. Or like you’re watching your own life rather than being properly in it.
Trying to force yourself to feel again rarely works. Neither does telling yourself you should be happier or more grateful. That usually just adds guilt on top of the numbness.
What helps more is easing off the pressure. Letting yourself exist without expecting a reaction from yourself. Sleeping properly if you can. Eating regularly. Doing small, ordinary things without analysing how they make you feel.
Talking can help, even if you don’t have emotions to describe. You don’t need the right words. Saying “I feel kind of blank” is enough.
If the numbness hangs around for a long time, or starts to bother you, extra support can help. Not because you’re broken. More because you’ve been holding things together for longer than you realised.
You’re not the only one who feels this way. A lot of people do, especially after long periods of stress or emotional effort. It doesn’t mean your feelings are gone. They usually come back slowly, once things feel safer and calmer again.
There’s no rush. And there’s nothing wrong with you for feeling this way.
I don’t always feel anxious either.
Mostly, I just don’t feel much of anything.Things happen and I know how I should react, but the feeling doesn’t really show up. Good things pass by without much impact. Bad things land, but only lightly. Like there’s a gap between me and whatever’s going on.
That can be worrying. You start wondering if something’s wrong with you. If you’ve stopped caring. If this is just how you are now.
Usually, it isn’t.
Feeling numb often comes after too much of something. Too much stress. Too much responsibility. Too much emotional noise for too long. When you don’t get space to deal with things, your system sometimes copes by shutting the door a bit.
Not forever. Just enough to get through.
It’s not always obvious when it starts. You don’t wake up one day numb. It creeps in. You keep going, keep managing, and only later realise that everything feels a bit distant.
For some people it feels like emptiness. For others it’s flatness. Or like you’re watching your own life rather than being properly in it.
Trying to force yourself to feel again rarely works. Neither does telling yourself you should be happier or more grateful. That usually just adds guilt on top of the numbness.
What helps more is easing off the pressure. Letting yourself exist without expecting a reaction from yourself. Sleeping properly if you can. Eating regularly. Doing small, ordinary things without analysing how they make you feel.
Talking can help, even if you don’t have emotions to describe. You don’t need the right words. Saying “I feel kind of blank” is enough.
If the numbness hangs around for a long time, or starts to bother you, extra support can help. Not because you’re broken. More because you’ve been holding things together for longer than you realised.
You’re not the only one who feels this way. A lot of people do, especially after long periods of stress or emotional effort. It doesn’t mean your feelings are gone. They usually come back slowly, once things feel safer and calmer again.
There’s no rush. And there’s nothing wrong with you for feeling this way.
