The Sea of Emotional Depth

Our capacity to think, feel, and sense exists along a spectrum. Some of us think and feel everything so very deeply. Much like the deepest creatures of the sea, we thrive living in the darkest, murkiest depths of ourselves. We could live here permanently if it weren't for life's humdrum tasks pulling us back up.

Those who identify as deep-sea dwellers often find themselves lost in thought, exploring the bottomless complexities of emotional intensity, constantly journeying, and seeking profound insights or experiences.

These are the blobfish, ready to hear your darkest fears the moment they meet you! Why waste time talking about the weather, anyway?

However, a problem for deep sea dwellers is that these inner experiences are incredibly absorptive. Much like emerging from the intense pressures of the ocean floor, these individuals can feel immeasurable discomfort when forced to come up from this intimate darkness.

Meanwhile, surface swimmers, like the porpoise or the jellyfish, take life as it comes. They are concerned with the tasks in front of them. They are gifted with the ability to experience the here & now more often. They don't like to dwell on their feelings, and that's if they slow down enough to notice their feelings in the first place! Perhaps they don't feel the need, or maybe they're deeply immersed in the work they have in front of them. Often, the very first time these folks confront the realm of feelings is when they experience an inescapable personal tragedy.

To the blobfish, the jellyfish may seem *too* unconcerned to understand having a rich inner life, and to the jellyfish, the blobfish may seem *too* preoccupied with intensity.

One of our tasks, then, is to find a way to engage meaningfully with one another while accepting the reality that we have inherent differences. The porpoise might not be able to withstand the same pressures as the sea cucumber, and the blobfish may feel too untethered to stay up with the fish for too long. But make no mistake... there is no actual "less than" or "greater than" in the sea of emotional depth. But we must seek to understand each other & take the risk that comes with misunderstanding or being misunderstood.

Also, to you fish in the middle: enjoy life in the in-between, and just be for now until you feel the tide pulling you naturally to some direction. This may be a time of stillness for you, which is a gift in itself.

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