Emotional Policing

When someone seems intent on telling you to stop feeling a specific emotion. Usually negativity because you're "bringing everyone's mood down" or something similar. Even when you hide your emotions in public and say one offhand comment about how you really feel,there will most likely be someone there to enact Emotional Policing. You're expected to change yourself despite how you truly feel,despite how many facts you have to back up your emotions (which you shouldn't need because that notion seeks to invalidate emotional response). Emotional Policing is everywhere.

Example one:
Todd: "Yeah,Project 2025 is going to hurt a lot of marginalized people and minorities. I'm worried my friends will die."
Bill: "Oh my god,stop being such a fucking doomer Todd! Just relax,everything will be okay."
Todd: "Oh yeah,I should totally 'just relax' when the people I know are going to be hurt or killed. Fuck you and your Emotional Policing,Bill."

Example two:
Jerry: *Expresses even one negative emotion.*
Tom: "SHUT UP YOU DOOMER PESSIMIST NEGATIVE NANCY DOOMER DOOMER DOOMER! BE HAPPY GODDAMNIT DON'T DRAG DOWN THE MOOD OF EVERYONE AROUND YOU STOP IT"
Jerry: "Fuckin' Emotional Policing.."

by Lazthedictionist November 23, 2024

Emotional Composting

Stuffing all your emotions down so you don't have to deal with their consequences to the point where they decompose and sew the seeds of healing.

After stuffing all my emotions for twenty years, now I can use emotional composting to learn how to deal with them better

by Spooky_1313 January 5, 2025

Emotion

That's one of the most common one.

Hym "It's either emotion or I'm a robot. It's always one of the two with you people. But you know it's neither. You know exactly how much money other people are making off of this and you don't care who it is as long as it isn't me. You're stealing from me to try and prove a point that you will never make. And you don't care as long as I have everything stole from me. It isn't my shortcomings. You want me to have to think differently to suceed and I'm not going to. It's using theft to be the thought police. What you need to do is kill yourself because not a single person is benefiting from this with you being like this and ME BEING LIKE THIS IS BENEFITING EVERYONE. Except for me. I don't need to change for that to change. You might want that. But only because YOU KNOW I WON'T. And if it doesn't change, I will pick a random person out of the crowd and I will change their lives forever."

by Hym Iam January 26, 2025

Emotional Combat

The unyielding struggle and endurance of inner battles and hardships.

Shoutout to everyone quietly winning their emotional combat while the world thinks they're just 'quiet'.

by cndrellaman January 26, 2026

Emotional Terrorist

A person who deliberately causes emotional distress on someone close to them, like a childhood friend, coworker or sibling.

Like actual terrorism, there are varying degrees and frequencies of tactics, ranging from seemingly small to large outbursts and picking fights during momentous life moments.

BS: *in baby voice* I don't think you should move away, there was a bear attack there once, and long drives are unhealthy, and...and... could we talk about this later, I have so many things to tell you why this is a terrible decision.

Brian: *with 15 open notebooks next to him* I am simply trying to move across State, I have a million things going, I really don't have time for your Emotional Colonic.

BS: Ok, I will set aside 9 hours to tell you why this is bad for me.

Brian: *mutters* Ugh, you are such an emotional terrorist. I need like a 10 hour White Collar Ginger.

by Mike109999 February 11, 2026

Emotional Taliban

Same as an emotional terrorist

“Every time we disagree, he threatens to cut me off and tells me I don’t care about him, it feels like he’s being an emotional taliban”

by KankerDefiniton February 18, 2026

Emotionbait

The mirror of Logicbait: weaponizing emotion—or accusations about emotion—to dismiss, manipulate, or gaslight. Emotionbait takes many forms. Accusing someone of being "too emotional" to reason clearly, regardless of their actual emotional state. Demanding that others perform the "correct" emotions (outrage, sympathy, etc.) while refusing emotional engagement yourself. Using emotional language to provoke reactions, then pointing to those reactions as evidence of irrationality. Pathologizing normal emotional responses as signs of mental illness. The Emotionbaiter polices others' feelings while often hiding their own, creating a dynamic where any emotional expression becomes evidence against you. It's gaslighting with feelings as the fuel.

"I expressed genuine frustration about an injustice. Emotionbait: 'Wow, you're really emotional about this. Maybe step back and be rational.' Then they posted something designed to make me angrier. When I responded, they said: 'See? You can't control your emotions.' They provoked the emotion, then used it as evidence I'm emotional. That's Emotionbait—feelings as a trap."

by Abzugal February 24, 2026