Creativity and Communication Go Hand in Hand

    There are advantages to expressing feelings directly when you're a kid. The main is one is that the adults who are your caretakers get information that will help them care for your needs.

    Children whose self-expression is thwarted learn not to tell adults if they're feeling bad-confused, anxious, hurt, frustrated or angry. Such children tend to act out feelings in indirect and inappropriate ways, such as withdrawing, whining, hitting or breaking things. Expressing feelings doesn't mean acting them out. Saying one is angry is different from hitting someone.

    Children who are taught to suppress certain feelings usually end up restricting their emotions across the board. Not only do they have trouble handling so-called negative feelings, but they also become numb to the positive ones, such as joy and elation.
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