Gen Z, Millennials, Gen X & Boomers Have Very Different Ideas Of What Counts As Being Too Emotional
Jojo Photos / ShutterstockNot many people actually like having strong negative reactions in front of other people. When they get super stressed out or exhausted and can't play their cards as close to their chest as they'd like to, it's easy to wonder if their emotional reactions are too strong. Depending on the environment someone grew up in, they may be more or less inclined to think they themselves or someone else is being too emotional when they let how they are feeling show.
Gen Z, millennials, Gen X, and baby boomers all have their own completely different ideas of what counts as someone being too emotional.
Older people are used to keeping their emotions pretty private. Showing how they feel in public doesn’t seem right to them. Younger generations, on the other hand, have fought hard to change people’s attitudes and think that the opposite is true.
Boomers think almost any public display of emotions goes too far and would be better handled privately.
It doesn’t take a huge show of emotion for boomers to think someone is being over-the-top. This generation values self-control and typically thinks strong emotions are something people need to deal with in private instead of putting them on display.
Peopleimages.com - YuriArcurs via Canva
This attitude comes from the intense mental health stigma that boomers grew up with. One survey found that, even now, boomers are more likely to blame younger generations’ worsening mental health on things like drugs and alcohol instead of the stressful world they live in.
Boomers don’t let anything get in the way of their responsibilities, including their feelings. They’ve always tried to suppress their emotions so they can get on with life. Now, the generation is facing higher levels of depression that they don’t know how to deal with.
Gen X believes they need to solve their own problems, including emotional ones.
Expressing emotions is really complicated for Gen X. They took on a lot of responsibility when they were younger, which made them think it’s always better to handle problems on their own. They aren’t going to sit around having long, heartfelt conversations about their feelings.
pixelheadphoto from Getty Images via Canva
This is causing problems for them now. Marriage and family therapist Jennifer Chappell Marsh said Gen Xers are “skilled at managing their own distress without letting anyone in.”
The thing is, they’ve reached the point in their lives when they really need to. Gen X doesn’t reach out for help in pretty much any situation. You won’t find them asking loved ones for reassurance that they believe they should be able to provide themselves. But this level of independence is making everything harder for them.
Millennials think that someone is being too emotional when they let their feelings fester for too long without talking about them.
After two generations did their best to sweep their emotions under the rug, millennials took a different approach. They worked hard to end the mental health stigma so everyone could talk about their feelings without shame.
dimaberlinphotos via Canva
Because of that, millennials think the way someone expresses their emotions is what makes them dramatic, not the emotions themselves. They value emotional intelligence, so someone talking about their feelings in a rational way isn’t an issue for them.
Instead, they think people who suppress their emotions and ignore their mental health are doing it wrong. Millennials see that as a ticking time bomb that will make someone too emotional in the long run because they didn’t deal with their feelings when they should have.
Gen Z doesn’t really consider anything too emotional, although other generations sometimes describe them that way.
Gen Z’s ideas about emotional expression are pretty similar to millennials’. They aren’t going to call someone out for showing how they feel in public as long as they do it in a way that’s healthy for them and for everyone around them.
pixelshot via Canva
This generation wants to make everyone feel comfortable enough to talk about what’s bothering them. They see it as a problem when people don’t do that, or when they invalidate others’ emotions. For them, being too emotional means trying too hard to hide your feelings.
Some members of older generations think Gen Z has gone too far. They’re criticized for paying too much attention to their emotions, which could be worsening their mental health. But Gen Z will always feel more comfortable with being vulnerable than with shutting down.
Mary-Faith Martinez is a writer with a bachelor’s degree in English and Journalism who covers news, psychology, lifestyle, and human interest topics.
