20/12/2023
There can be a dissonance between what is expected of us - to be JOLLY and LIGHT versus what we are actually feeling (dread, annoyance, fear, grief, overwhelm….). This gap between feeling and expectation can create what Sarah Ahmed called the ‘alien affect’. When we don’t fulfil the collective’s expectations to meet the moment - ie to be happy, then our real feelings are rejected as inappropriate. These kinds of moral repudiations are painful! And can cause us to feel rejected or wrong and split parts of ourselves off into our shadow...
Read on over here: https://www.kcbtherapy.com/blog/the-holiday-affect
