EXPRESSING DIFFICULT FEELINGS

Being able to confront another person seems to be one of the most difficult tasks for anyone in a relationship. Even the most assertive of us seem to find it difficult to confront others in a way that gets our message and feelings across without offending another or brining on their defensive counter attack. We like to teach our clients, particularly those in primary relationships, guidelines for expressing feelings in a healthy and effective manner. One of the basic errors we find is the confusion between “I feel” and “I” messages. Learning to identify and label our feelings, as well as countering negative attributions about the appropriateness of expressing them, is one of Dr. Paul Standal’s goals. He provides useful words and affirmation tools for expressing difficult feelings to help facilitate healthy expression of feelings.