Playing it safe

Playing it safe in communication is when you don't say what you feel. You should be able to say what's on your mind and what you feel without fear of a backlash. This something I've struggled with all my life. Since I was a kid I was very vocal but over time I was told to “shut up” or “speak only when spoken to”. This teaching was damaging, I learned at an early age to keep feelings and emotions inwardly. As it turns out this very unhealthy for mind, body, and soul. I am no longer fearful in speaking my mind when in a comfortable situation. Inspie of that, I still struggle with this when it comes to my personal relationships. There's always a backlash for speaking your mind. Now, I realize that I wasn't the problem. The person hearing what I had to say is the problem. They are unable to cope with what's being said. Mostly, I think is due to emotional immaturity. Perhaps they too were brought up in similar ways as me. Passive-aggressive behavior is one way to deflect the fact you can't cope with someone's voicing of their feelings. Now I am learning to be more vocal as well as improving my language skills by using non-combative language so that I can communicate effectively instead of arguing, screaming or being rude or disrespectful.