I had a session with T yesterday and we talked about my difficulty identifying the feelings I have at times, often not able to recognize/name them until the next day, which is just darned inconvenient in terms of therapy. T asked if I always have this difficulty, or does it only happen in therapy...? It's always a problem for me, but after our session yesterday, I thought long and hard about why this might be the case.

Growing up, I recall my mother telling me frequently not to refute my father, or 'don't contradict what your father says.' (I must have been angry much of the time for her to say those things) If I was sad, my dad would tell me to 'straighten up' and 'don't be such a sad sack.' I'm taking a wild guess, here, but I'm thinking, for the most part, I wasn't allowed to feel emotions growing up.

Does anyone else have this difficulty and, if so, what do you think has contributed to your problem identifying/naming your feelings in therapy? (If you feel comfortable saying...)