Emotional Literacy aka Inside Out 2
I loved Inside Out when it came out years ago. That Christmas, I gave the characters for each feelings as gifts to my family members who saw the movie. Fear and Disgust continue to sit on my book shelf. I incorporated into Inside Out into my work with child and adolescents clients. As the years went by, my practice changed and now I work with adolescents and adults. Plus, rumors went around that a second one was going to be released. When news broke about Inside Out 2, I was so excited and could not wait for it’s release. The premise was the main character was a teenager now and there were going to be new feelings. Once it was released, clients mentioned how much they enjoyed the movie. One teen client said “it was relatable” and a parent was excited to share her thoughts about the movie, pictures with her daughter and the conversations they had. It was a popular topic in my sessions. My Instagram feed was filled with clips and lessons to discuss with clients. Finally, I was able to see it with some of my the most important people in my life.
In my opinion, it was better than the first and I loved the first one. The depiction of each feeling was impressive. Joy, Sadness, Fear, Anger and Disgust are all back. There are several new ones too including Anxiety, Embarrassment, Ennui, and Envy. I loved it and can’t wait to see it again. Here are few lessons from it.
This is not just a kid’s movie. The movie is for everyone. Yes it is a Pixar movie and like most Pixar movies it is for children, adolescents and adults. In a video with the creative team, they shared an interesting piece of information. At one point, the movie was screened twice. One screening was for pre-teens and teens. Feedback was overwhelmingly positive. The second screening was for parents only. The parental feedback was more negative stating the content was too much for children and teens. The feedback was received. The big message is teens want this information. We have to keep in mind different generations have different feelings about mental health and emotional literacy. Look at your own family. Older generations often does see the need to discuss their emotions or go to therapy. As we get to Gen X, it is a mixed bag. After that generation, the comfort level with mental health increases. Children and adolescents want to know how to name their emotions and what they can do with these emotions.
Each emotion has a purpose. When we pay attention to our feelings, we can figure out what action to take. As we grow older, our emotions get more complex. In the first movie Joy, Sadness, Anger, Disgust and Fear were present. In the current movie, a few other feelings were added including Anxiety, Embarrassment, Envy and Ennu aka Boredom. As we grow so do our emotions. Anxiety is depicted in both ways. Anxiety can feel unpleasant and out of control at times. The focus tends to be on the future and what could go wrong. It helps us pay attention, remember details, and avoid dangerous situations. Again anxiety can be intense and tools can be learned to manage it. If channeled correctly, it can be a strength. Reframing these challenging emotions can help as adolescents grow into adulthood. Everyone has a choice about their feelings. You can either use them and learn what to do with the feelings or try to suppress them.
Self compassion is a tool to deal with tough emotions. This is often hard to pull off. Being kind or compassionate to yourself goes a long way in moving through challenging emotions. It requires becoming aware of how you talk to yourself. We can be pretty cruel to ourselves. Practice self compassion can help.
I am looking forward to seeing the movie again and again. I anticipate learning something new each time.
