How Does Emotional Numbness Affect Our Lives?
Emotional numbness is a mental state where a person struggles to feel emotions in situations that usually call for a response, or shows emotions in a limited or incomplete way.
This condition can arise from various factors like trauma, high stress, depression, anxiety disorders, medication, or personality issues. Known as emotional numbness or emotional blindness, it is scientifically termed alexithymia.
Alexithymia comes from Greek words meaning "without words for emotions." It is characterized by problems in recognizing, identifying, and expressing emotions.
People with alexithymia find it hard to verbally communicate their feelings. However, it is not just about lack of verbal expression; it also involves difficulty in understanding emotions.
Often, those with this condition may convey their feelings through physical reactions instead of through emotional words. This is linked to the concept of somatization, where emotional distress manifests as physical symptoms.
Research indicates there isn't a clear cause-and-effect link between alexithymia and psychosomatic symptoms. Thus, alexithymia is viewed more as a personality trait or an emotional skill gap.
According to attachment theory, emotional numbness can be caused by:
Insecure attachment styles that arise from inadequate or inconsistent emotional support during childhood. This may hinder a child's ability to share their feelings and lower their awareness of emotions. Consequently, insecure attachment can be a fundamental cause of alexithymia.
Insecure attachment may also affect how children learn to express emotions. They might lean toward holding back their feelings instead of showing them, which can lead to alexithymia.
In summary, one major reason for alexithymia is the attachment styles formed in childhood. Insecure attachment can lead to traits linked with alexithymia, such as limited emotional expression and reduced emotional awareness.