How Are You Feeling?

Here at UBC, students come from diverse cultures, and each one promotes particular ways of relating to or exposing our personal feelings. In almost every culture around the world, there is some version of a taboo against expressing personal feelings. We often think we are being rude if we do express our feelings. So a lot of us, no matter where we come from, have a hard time expressing ourselves.

There are also restrictions on how we express ourselves based on norms of behaviour for men and women. If we think about it for a minute or two, we can see how gender stereotypes like “men shouldn’t cry” or “nice girls don’t get angry” can have a lasting impact on each person individually and then society as a whole.

Here at Speakeasy, you can count on support from other students who will take the time with you to help you sort out how you are feeling today, right now. We understand that it may take you a while to get past the ideas we all carry about how we should feel and think. We also know that getting that bit of time to sort things out will help you discover the best way to deal with the situation you are having feelings about!

Here’s a fun way to get used to identifying feelings. Enjoy!

(Graphic courtesy of http://www.comet-cartoons.com/smileyFeelings.php)

And here’s another way to get a bit closer to discovering what you are feeling: