balance Archives - WHJ Online

Introduction

I think about health a lot, and one thing that really affects me is feeling completely drained from always trying to be strong. A lot of people seem responsible and capable, so others think they are doing fine, but after a while, it starts to feel like a weight is on them. They get used to keeping everything going, fixing problems, and helping others, even when they feel like they are falling apart inside. The hard part is that people often say things about being strong, but they do not understand what it means to be vulnerable. So a lot of people suffer in silence, not because they do not have feelings, but because they think they have no room to talk about them. Mental health is important, and emotional exhaustion is a part of it. I think people need to know that it is okay to not be strong all the time and that mental health topics, like emotional exhaustion, need to be discussed more.

Being the one can get really tiring. At first, it looks like you’re really mature, disciplined, and strong. You show up, handle stuff, and keep going. Over time, always being that person can make you feel alone. People come to you for help. They rarely ask how you’re really doing.

This can make you hide your feelings. You stop sharing your struggles because you don’t want to worry others or seem weak.

The thing is, hiding your pain doesn’t make it go away. It can turn into anxiety, make you short-tempered, exhaust you, or make you feel disconnected. Sometimes the strongest people feel the loneliest. They’ve learned to survive, not to show themselves.

I think mental health means being okay with being human. Being strong doesn’t mean being silent. Real strength is knowing when to take a break, ask for help, and say something hurts. Being honest, resting, and expressing your feelings is not weak. It’s healing. When people feel safe to drop the “act they start to reconnect with themselves in a healthier way.

The Loneliness behind Being “The Strong One”

Being the one can be really tough on you after a while. At first, it seems like a thing. You are handling things and getting stuff done. You show up. Keep going no matter what. After some time, it can start to feel very lonely.

People look up to you. They want you to help them or give them advice. They do not usually ask how you are doing. You are the one they depend on. You have to deal with your own problems by yourself. This means you have to hide how you feel so you can still seem strong.

This can go on for a time, and it can make you feel like you are not connected to other people or even to yourself. You might feel like nobody really sees you or understands you. You could feel very tired and sad, even if everything looks okay on the outside. Being the one is not always easy, and it can be very hard on you.

When Strength Becomes Emotional Silence

Over time, being strong all the time can become a habit where you stop talking about your feelings. You do this because you think there is no room for your emotions, not because you do not feel anything anymore. You want to be someone people can count on, so you stay calm and in charge even when you are really struggling inside.

This can create a difference between how you act and what you are really going through. The more you ignore what you need, the harder it gets to know what that is. You might start to feel empty, like you are not really connected to anything, like you are just going through the motions on the outside but feeling nothing on the inside.

It is really important to see that this is happening. When you realize that it is okay to feel things, to talk about them, and to ask for help, that does not mean you are not strong anymore. It means that you are more aware of yourself and better at taking care of your needs. Your emotional needs are important. You should pay attention to them. Recognizing your needs and emotional silence is a big step towards being more balanced and self-aware, and that is what emotional resilience and your emotional needs are all about.

Redefining Strength through Vulnerability

True strength is not about carrying everything by yourself. It’s about knowing when to be open and honest with yourself and others. Being vulnerable helps you connect with others on a deeper level and feel better emotionally. It makes room for people to understand you, support you, and help you heal.

You can start being more vulnerable with certain key steps. For example, you can share your thoughts with someone you trust. You can also set boundaries to protect your feelings. You can just allow yourself to take a break and rest. These honest moments help you get back in touch with your emotions. They also help you stop feeling like you always need to be strong.

Redefining what it means to be strong involves understanding that being means being soft, kind to yourself, and brave enough to be yourself. It means having the courage to let people see the real you.

Conclusion

Being strong doesn’t mean you have to suffer. Resilience is good. Not if it hurts your feelings. It’s okay to feel and say how you feel and ask for help. That’s what humans do.

When we mix being strong with being open, we get along better with ourselves and others. Then we’re not just getting by. We’re living with honest talk, real friends, and peace inside.

I picked this topic to write about because I have been through it myself. There have been times in my life when I had to be the one. I was always trying to take care of everything and everyone. I did not want to show that I was struggling.

I learned that being the one all the time is really tough on my emotions. It is easy to forget about my feelings when I am trying to be strong for everyone else. Over time, I started to understand how bad it is for my mental health to suppress my emotions.

This experience taught me a lot about how important it is to be vulnerable and to understand my own emotions. I think it is crucial to express my feelings in a way. I wanted to write about this topic also because I think many people are going through the same thing as I am. Emotional suppression and mental wellbeing are topics that I care deeply about. I believe that talking about these topics, in a kind and honest way, can really help people.

References

Aldao, A., Nolen-Hoeksema, S., & Schweizer, S. (2010). Emotion-regulation strategies across psychopathology: A meta-analytic review. Clinical Psychology Review, 30(2), 217–237. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpr.2009.11.004

Gross, J. J., & John, O. P. (2003). Individual differences in two emotion regulation processes: Implications for affect, relationships, and well-being. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 85(2), 348–362. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.85.2.348

Maslach, C., & Leiter, M. P. (2016). Understanding the burnout experience: Recent research and its implications for psychiatry. World Psychiatry, 15(2), 103–111. https://doi.org/10.1002/wps.20311

Neff, K. D. (2003). Self-compassion: An alternative conceptualization of a healthy attitude toward oneself. Self and Identity, 2(2), 85–101. https://doi.org/10.1080/15298860309032

Sharma, M., & Rush, S. E. (2014). Mindfulness-based stress reduction as a stress management intervention: A systematic review. Journal of Evidence-Based Complementary & Alternative Medicine, 19(4), 271–286. https://doi.org/10.1177/2156587214543143

Author Bio

María José is a multilingual professional with a background in business administration, operations, and content creation. She has a strong interest in psychology and mental wellbeing, supported by her studies in psychology and psychological emergency response. Her work combines organizational skills, communication, and a passion for understanding human behavior. María José is particularly interested in topics related to emotional resilience, personal development, and mental health awareness. Through her writing, she aims to create meaningful, relatable content that encourages reflection, emotional understanding, and personal growth.

Published under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) license for mental health awareness with editorial review.

Tjard’s Apprenticeship as an Electrician

Hello! I am Tjard and I have lived on the island of Sylt in Germany all 20 years of my life. If I would not live here I would probably be way happier. I am fine with any pronouns used on me but feel uncomfortable at the idea of expressing myself about it here. I have some reasons for this like my uncle(that lives on the “property”) who just before my apprenticeship started, “warned” me about a “man” who outside of work hours wears dresses. Also, the co-worker I am on tour with most of the time, once told me he would be very disappointed in seeing me date a man. He is my direct neighbour. He is hard to deal with most days and drains me. I theoretically like what I work as and it can be really rewarding and get me really really happy. I am an electrician’s apprentice. I like the diagnosis and repair of home appliances and love to see “historic” home appliances on which this is the easiest.

I understand the need for more efficient appliances, maybe just more sustainable but what I see in modern devices does not seem in any way more sustainable to me. They use more electronic components which are prone to failure and are “repaired” by replacement. This is expensive and resource intensive. Our global recycling does not recover all resources and is energy intensive. I am pretty certain that the longevity of the historic devices outweigh the environmental harm done by their “excessive” use of water and electricity. The need of our capitalist system to grow has incentivised companies to lower the lifetime of devices and make it harder to repair them. It is really depressing to see/hear how people’s right to repair their own property has limited everyone. They should have easy access to repair tutorials and resources to do so.

I decided to learn about electronics around the age of 13 and started working at the age of 19. There are a couple of reasons for this. My family had financial hardships in the past and this job pays decently and feels really secure to me understandably. The interest in physical labour here has dropped so far that there is serious lack of personnel everywhere so it will be easy to find employment anywhere and will get me to a point where I can go to uni without needing to go into debt. I always had some interest in this and it just gives me even further independence by being able to fix any electrical problems I personally encounter with ease.

One recommendation I have for anyone that has come this far is to go to their distribution box and look if there is any device that says “test it regularly”, and well, just test it. They might also be built into sockets primarily in bathrooms. This would probably be a residual circuit breaker (RCD) and it is one of the few ways to protect people from death by electrocution and I find them really important.

This post has been written over around 2 hours. I like writing about myself and will continue with introducing myself further and going over to the previous chapters of my life at high school, which I could probably write many thousands of words over and still continue with this topic but I think 500 words of my incoherent rambling is more than enough.