Appropriate reactions?
I spent some time on Google searching "healthy" (in association with what I have been learning in class) and what I found was healthy choices, healthy decisions, healthy thoughts, healthy living, healthy boundaries, and many more healthy [enter noun here], yet I never seemed to find a definition of what is meant by "healthy" itself in this context.
Of course when you look up the definition of healthy, you may be overwhelmed to find out that it simply means, "of good health." Yes, this helps tremendously. And just to take another step, the definition of health is, "the state of being free from illness or injury." Well, that gets us a little closer. Therefore, my deductive reasoning skills (oh my college professors would be so proud of me) are going to conclude that "healthy" as in the example of "healthy reaction" would define as "choosing a reaction that does not cause illness or injury."
Next search, this time for "appropriate" results in a much easier find of, "suitable or proper in the circumstances." That wasn't so hard.
Now, there is a method to my madness here and it is this question: How do you know the appropriate, healthy reaction to a situation? Are there certain ways we must react in certain situations? Is there something wrong with us if we do not react in the same manner as what society might view as normal? Of course this is a pretty wide spectrum question, so let's reel it in to situations where you find out things about yourself.
Ok, so let me try to explain. If someone finds out they have a terminal illness (no, I do not have a terminal illness), how are they supposed to react? Are they required to have an emotional breakdown? Do they have to fall into a state of sorrow? If they just shrugged their shoulders, said ok, and then went to work on things needed to get better, would they be viewed as unfeeling? Would a non-overly emotional response correlate to the thought that maybe they are not taking things serious enough?
Think about it. Where do we learn how to react in certain situations? The answer to this will be different for each person yet it is my guess that most replies would fall in the categories of: was taught how to react, learned by observation, or took your best guess.
So, again, what is the norm for reacting? How are you supposed to react?
I've been in an emotional flux for a few days now, almost numb. I don't know the appropriate way to react. Am I supposed to have this huge emotional breakdown? God forbid, am I supposed to cry? Am I allowed to just sit and ponder it all as if watching the tide come in and out?
I feel like I have been successful on the journey to climb out of this great dark cave (while realizing I still have a ways to go) and then someone kicked the ladder out from under me. I don't want to cry. I don't want to look and see if I am bleeding. I don't want to cower and say I can't do this. I want to stand up, yell "F*** You!", put my ladder back up and start climbing again. I will fix what I need to fix on the way and I just want to keep climbing. I don't have time for singing the shoulda-woulda-coulda's nor do I want to. No, I'm not overly thrilled with what is staring back at me yet I refuse to let it beat me. If I cower, I let it win. If I sit down, I let it win. If I give up, I let it win. The only person who gets to claim a win at the end of this is me.
No, I don't like realizing I am more broken than I wanted to admit. I don't like that there is still a lot of it I don't understand. I don't like that I now have no choice but to ask for help. I will not curl up in a fetal position and give in. Like hell if I will roll over and die. Every day is a new day.
Appropriate, healthy reaction? I've got no clue, yet wrong or not, it is what I choose until I am told differently.
Of course when you look up the definition of healthy, you may be overwhelmed to find out that it simply means, "of good health." Yes, this helps tremendously. And just to take another step, the definition of health is, "the state of being free from illness or injury." Well, that gets us a little closer. Therefore, my deductive reasoning skills (oh my college professors would be so proud of me) are going to conclude that "healthy" as in the example of "healthy reaction" would define as "choosing a reaction that does not cause illness or injury."
Next search, this time for "appropriate" results in a much easier find of, "suitable or proper in the circumstances." That wasn't so hard.
Now, there is a method to my madness here and it is this question: How do you know the appropriate, healthy reaction to a situation? Are there certain ways we must react in certain situations? Is there something wrong with us if we do not react in the same manner as what society might view as normal? Of course this is a pretty wide spectrum question, so let's reel it in to situations where you find out things about yourself.
Ok, so let me try to explain. If someone finds out they have a terminal illness (no, I do not have a terminal illness), how are they supposed to react? Are they required to have an emotional breakdown? Do they have to fall into a state of sorrow? If they just shrugged their shoulders, said ok, and then went to work on things needed to get better, would they be viewed as unfeeling? Would a non-overly emotional response correlate to the thought that maybe they are not taking things serious enough?
Think about it. Where do we learn how to react in certain situations? The answer to this will be different for each person yet it is my guess that most replies would fall in the categories of: was taught how to react, learned by observation, or took your best guess.
So, again, what is the norm for reacting? How are you supposed to react?
I've been in an emotional flux for a few days now, almost numb. I don't know the appropriate way to react. Am I supposed to have this huge emotional breakdown? God forbid, am I supposed to cry? Am I allowed to just sit and ponder it all as if watching the tide come in and out?
I feel like I have been successful on the journey to climb out of this great dark cave (while realizing I still have a ways to go) and then someone kicked the ladder out from under me. I don't want to cry. I don't want to look and see if I am bleeding. I don't want to cower and say I can't do this. I want to stand up, yell "F*** You!", put my ladder back up and start climbing again. I will fix what I need to fix on the way and I just want to keep climbing. I don't have time for singing the shoulda-woulda-coulda's nor do I want to. No, I'm not overly thrilled with what is staring back at me yet I refuse to let it beat me. If I cower, I let it win. If I sit down, I let it win. If I give up, I let it win. The only person who gets to claim a win at the end of this is me.
No, I don't like realizing I am more broken than I wanted to admit. I don't like that there is still a lot of it I don't understand. I don't like that I now have no choice but to ask for help. I will not curl up in a fetal position and give in. Like hell if I will roll over and die. Every day is a new day.
Appropriate, healthy reaction? I've got no clue, yet wrong or not, it is what I choose until I am told differently.