There is a lot of information available about how to manage and overcome negative thoughts. However, I don’t think we can understand these feelings if we don’t know what causes them in the first place. Negative thoughts come from a variety of sources such as stress, anger, or fear. In this blog post, I will discuss some of those causes and offer practical tips on managing thoughts when someone feel empty so they don’t take over your life.
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What Is “Feeling Empty”?
Feeling empty is a term used to describe the experience of feeling hollow or devoid of emotion. It can be a very distressing sensation that can leave people feeling lost, alone, and uncertain about their future. This feeling is also known as “existential vacuum”, and it is often associated with anxiety, depression, and other mood disorders. When someone feels this way, they may have a sense that their life lacks purpose or meaning. It also often leads to a sense of emptiness or hollowness inside. This feeling can be triggered by a variety of things, such as:
Signs When Someone Feel Empty
There are many signs that might tell you that your loved one is feeling empty. This includes:
Feeling Lost
This feeling is often described as “feeling adrift” or like a boat that is lost at sea with no means of navigation. Your loved one may feel aimless and without direction, almost as if they are wandering in circles. They might also express feeling overwhelmed by the world around them- such as all of the decisions to be made and how quickly life seems to move on.
Feeling Alone
Another sign associated with an existential vacuum is feelings of isolation and loneliness. This can lead your loved one to withdraw from friends and family members because it is just too difficult for them to face people when they feel this way. It’s important not to take these actions personally: someone who feels empty will likely lash out at those closest since they know it won’t result in them being abandoned.
Lack of Emotion
When someone feels empty, they may also experience a lack of emotion or feeling “dead inside”. This can be frightening and confusing for the person experiencing it because it is such a stark contrast to how they usually feel. They might have trouble relating to others on an emotional level and find themselves unable to express empathy or compassion.
Anxiety and Depression
Depression and anxiety are often associated with an existential vacuum as these feelings can leave people feeling lost and hopeless. Someone who is struggling with depression may feel like there’s no reason to go on living, while someone with anxiety may constantly worry about their future and what could go wrong. These negative thoughts can make the emptiness even more pronounced.
Confusion About Future
When someone feels empty, they may also have a lot of questions about their future. They may be uncertain about what they want to do with their life or where they see themselves in the future. This can lead to a great deal of anxiety and stress as they try to figure out their next steps.
Feeling Unworthy or Guilty
Feeling empty can also lead to feelings of unworthiness or guilt. People who feel this way may hold themselves to very high standards, which makes them unable to take pleasure in their accomplishments because they just aren’t good enough yet. They might even have a hard time enjoying simple pleasures that many other people would find enjoyable- such as food, music, reading, etc. They might also be overly critical of others and blame themselves whenever tragedy strikes somewhere around the world. This is often referred to as “survivor’s guilt”.
Feeling Hopeless and Worthless
This feeling can also lead to a lack of hope or hopelessness. People who feel empty often have trouble envisioning a future for themselves and find it difficult to believe that things will get better. They may even think that they don’t deserve good things in their life, which only makes them feel worse about themselves and contributes to the feeling of emptiness.
Belief That Life Has No Purpose
Feeling empty can cause people to question whether there is any point in going on living at all since everything seems so meaningless anyway. This thought process typically leads someone down an unhealthy path where they begin looking outside of themselves for answers instead of turning inward and trusting their own feelings. It’s important not to let your loved one go through this alone: you can provide support and remind them that they are not alone in their struggles.
Reasons Why Someone Feel Empty?
There can be a lot of reasons why someone may feel empty, but these are the most common. While this feeling can be overwhelming at times, there are things that you can do to help your loved one get through it and feel better again.
Loss of Loved One
The loss of a loved one is often one of the most common reasons why someone may feel empty. This can be due to death, divorce, or even separation. When someone loses someone they love, it can be difficult to cope with the pain and emptiness that comes along with it.
Life Changes
Changes in life such as moving, starting a new job, or graduating from school can also leave people feeling empty. These changes can be exciting but also scary since they bring about new challenges and unknowns. It’s normal for someone to feel this way after a big change in their life- give them time to adjust and they will likely start to feel better again.
Traumatic Experiences
Neg experiences such as abuse, violence, or neglect can also cause people to feel empty. This kind of trauma often results in symptoms such as anxiety, depression, PTSD, and other mental health disorders that make it difficult for someone to cope with their feelings or move forward in life after the event has taken place.
Hormonal Changes
This one is specific to women and can be due to fluctuations in hormones such as estrogen and progesterone. These changes can lead to a feeling of emptiness, sadness, or anxiety. They often occur during times like puberty, menopause, and pregnancy.
Drug or Alcohol Abuse
Using drugs or alcohol as a way to cope with feelings of emptiness is unfortunately common. When someone becomes addicted to these substances, they will do anything to get their hands on them which can include neglecting responsibilities, lying, and even stealing. This only serves to make the person feel worse about themselves in the long run.
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
This is a mental health disorder that can develop after someone has gone through a traumatic event. PTSD often causes people to feel flashbacks, nightmares, and intrusive thoughts related to the event. This can lead to feelings of isolation, guilt, and emptiness.
Bipolar Disorder
This is a mental health disorder that causes people to experience extreme mood swings from happiness to depression. People with bipolar disorder may also feel empty during their depressive episodes.
Anxiety Disorders
People who suffer from anxiety disorders often have trouble dealing with their intense and irrational fears. This can result in them feeling overwhelmed and hopeless which leads to a sense of emptiness.
Depression
Depression is a mental health disorder that causes people to feel sad, hopeless, and worthless for long periods of time. This can lead to symptoms such as loss of interest in activities they once loved, lack of motivation, and emotional emptiness.
How To Help Someone Who Feel Empty?
There are many methods through which one can help their friend or family member who feels empty. These are some of the most helpful things that you can do to support someone during this time:
Learn About Their Struggle
It’s important not to act like everything is fine when your loved one is clearly struggling with whatever they’re dealing with within themselves. The best thing that you can do for them is there and listen without judgment. You may want to encourage your loved one to seek professional help through counseling, medications, or other forms of treatment so they feel empowered instead of hopeless in getting better again.
Encourage Healthy Lifestyle
Eating well and exercising regularly will only improve the way someone feels physically which makes it easier for them on an emotional level as well. Your encouragement might just be what they need to get out of the house and start taking care of themselves again.
Be Patient
It’s not going to happen overnight, but your loved one will likely see a change in their mood over time if you continue to show them love and support. You can’t force someone into recovery or happiness, all you can do is be there for them when needed.
Show Appreciation For Their Efforts
Even though it might take some time before your loved one starts feeling better about themselves after experiencing emptiness from whatever caused it, seeing how much effort they put in towards making that change should make you proud as well! Your encouragement during this process plays an important role in helping them along the way which makes you their rock during tough times.
Try Different Methods
Not every method will work for everyone, which is why you should try different things to find what works best for your loved one. They may not want to take medications because of the side effects it might have on them or they might prefer talking therapy over medication as a way of dealing with their emptiness. In this case, do whatever makes your friend feel comfortable and safe so that they can start feeling better again soon!
Do Not Be An Enabler
It’s easy to be there for someone who seems down all the time and supports anything that they’re going through especially if we care about them deeply. However, it’s just as important during these moments where emotions are running high to draw around yourself so you don’t enable their negative behavior. This means that you shouldn’t give into them when they’re asking for money, doing things for them that they can do themselves, or making decisions for them without consenting to it first.
Conclusion
In conclusion, there are many reasons why someone might feel an emptiness inside them. It’s important to be patient and supportive while your loved one deals with these feelings as they work through whatever is causing it. There are many available treatments for various mental health disorders, so don’t hesitate to seek professional help if you believe that your loved one needs it.
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