You know when you go through something so traumatic it affects your life forever? But then, when you try to explain it to your best friend he/she pretends to understand, when in reality you know they have NO idea how you feel. It’s hard because you don’t usually find someone who knows exactly how you feel even if they went through the exact same experience. Here’s why:
We are all born with a lil something called a diathesis, which is our biological/psychological predisposition to disorder according to my abnormal psych textbook. It is basically a vulnerability–something has to trigger it and the trigger and levels at which we are triggered are different for all of us.
Why does this matter Rachel?? It’s summer girl. We don’t care about your brain lessons.
It matters because our diathesis has a MAJOR impact on our perception of stress. So we can go through the same event and not process it the same, because one friends diathesis will be triggered and they will experience more stress and anxiety from neurons let off in their brain than the person standing next to them.
It’s kind of crazy to think that no matter how similar our lives, experiences, and upbringings are we will never be or think 100% like someone else. So next time your friend is upset about something you think is no big deal, or maybe you’re upset about something no one seems to understand–think about this lil psych lesson, take a deep breath, and appreciate them for who they are.
Spread Smiles,
Rach
