I was in my office in Wilmslow yesterday checking through my day’s list of appointments which always feels like a bit of an emotional rollercoaster. As I read the names I automatically tune into where they are emotionally, so in the space of a couple of minutes I can go from feeling totally and frustratingly stuck, to incredibly fragile to utterly bewildered. It’s a really strange thing I know, but when you work as a psychologist (therapist, psychotherapist, counsellor, coach, call it what you will), you will understand that when the currency you work with is people’s emotions and the goal you are always aiming for is positive emotion or behaviour, it’s never an ‘average’ day at work.
Anybody who knows me already realises that I sometimes find it very difficult to actually pick up the phone, particularly after a long day at work; you are much more likely to get a text or an email from me. I fully appreciate how frustrating this is, but by the time I have the space to be able to think about anything other than work, I’m emotionally exhausted, I have nothing else to give. It’s so much easier to send a text or an email as you can just ‘send and go’ and there is no emotional engagement needed.
I just wondered yesterday how much this bright new world of social media is eroding our ability to engage emotionally and what the impact of this is on our relationships?