Does anyone else feel weird and pathetic when opening up to others especially when you get older? I know people say it's okay to open up and it may even be healthy but it still feels weird and can open up many opportunities for people to judge you. I've been judged before and I've seen others be judged for opening up which is why I always reply with "I'm fine" or "pretty good" when someone asks how things are going. I've learned that most people don't actually want to hear anything negative when they ask how you are and I learned that the hard way many years ago.

It just sounds weak and repulsive when I open up and I always retract what I say when I accidentally tell someone that I'm not having a good day. I worry they will wonder why I felt the need to tell them that I'm upset and may feel weirded out so I tell them everything is actually fine even if it's not. There's always a stigma of disgust when someone opens up about how they feel especially if you're a guy even if people say they're okay with it and that there's nothing wrong with expressing yourself. The only time I'm okay with telling people about something negative I experienced is when I'm using it as a learning lesson and telling them how I made changes to ensure it doesn't happen again but otherwise I don't tell people about my problems.