In this edition of the VOX Bubble, students from Shiloh High School discussed the ins and outs of their feelings as they attended the “Inside Out” movie night hosted by Silence The Shame.
If you could talk to one emotion from “Inside Out 2” who would it be and why?
“The emotion would be anxiety for me because I have it like a lot. I would just let her know that it’s okay for some things to go bad… It’s okay for you to have issues because there is always going to be a solution at the end of the day. Even though you can’t solve it right now, don’t pressure yourself so you don’t over-escalate and have anxiety and panic attacks.” – Queen-Neyarriye, 18
“It would probably be anger because he’s funny.” – Malachi, 15
“Joy, because I think there’s nothing wrong with her. She’s like my favorite emotion because Joy always feels good..” –Jaiden, 17
“Disgust, because why do you hate everything? You need to love some things in life because life is beautiful. Everything should be loved, no matter what it is.” – Tyrese, 17
If you could give advice to your younger self about handling emotions, what would it be?
“Try to control your emotions a little better, because some emotions can get out of hand.” – Olivia, 18,
“Just take a chill pill, it’s not always that serious. That’s it.” – Lane, 18,
“I would say, just try to control them. It’s simple because even now I struggle with it, but I’m getting better and better at it over time. So just try to keep it cool.” – Marlon, 15
If you could create a new emotion what would it be, and what would it do?
“Probably adaptability, because I think personally I’m able to adapt well to any environment and I think it’s a good emotion for other people to have.” -Leo, 17
What do you do when handling big emotions for yourself or a friend?
“I tend to isolate myself for big sad emotions, or I talk to someone I trust and kind of vent to them about it. I talk to my parents about them a lot. For big happy emotions, I like to share with my friends and tell them what’s going on and why I’m happy, and they’re usually happy for me.” – Marlon, 18
“You cheer them up by saying kind things like, ‘Are you okay’ or ‘Calm down.’” – Saniah, 8
Do your friendships or relationships ever impact or put a strain on your mental health?
“Friendships and relationships are very important to me. I like to build a lot of connections with a lot of people emotionally. I feel like it does take a mental strain to maintain them a lot of the time.” – Elijah, 18
“Personally, it doesn’t, but I’ve witnessed it happen. I witnessed relationships break up friendships or friendships break up relationships. A part of life is being able to balance both.” – Anjola, 18
Resources:
For more resources about mental health topics and some how to balance living with the ins and outs of big emotions, visit the following sites!
Free Your Feels GA is a mental health awareness campaign inspiring teens to speak up, listen with care, and connect to each other — and to supports for help!
988 Lifeline provides free confidential emotional support to people in suicidal crisis or emotional distress 24 hours a day and 7 days a week.
Silence the Shame hosts events for youth (teens and college students) to feel empowered and educated on mental health and wellness.
For more resources and teens’ stories about mental health, visit voxatl.org/home/teen-mental-health/.
