Wrestler turned mental health advocate takes a stand for those who are labeled 'too sensitive'
"Being sensitive is not a weakness."
A sensitive man crying.
It’s perplexing that people view sensitivity as a weakness. Why is it wrong that some people have more empathy than others and that they feel life on a much deeper level? Without highly sensitive people, we wouldn’t have many great artists, activists, or humanitarians. Doesn’t it seem like we need sensitive people now more than ever?
If you’re someone who has been made to feel weak or inferior because you're attuned to the emotional states of yourself and others, you have a new supporter in an unlikely place. Patrick McNeil, an actor, award-winning filmmaker, and professional wrestler, who goes by the name Rush Rancid, says that highly sensitive people should be celebrated, not maligned. And, if anyone has a problem with that, they may be forced to eat a turnbuckle.
What's wrong with being 'too sensitive'?
McNiel is a content creator who makes videos on social media, encouraging people to become their authentic selves. Although he’s not a trained therapist, he hopes that others can learn from his seven-year journey to become the highest version of himself.
“Being sensitive is not a weakness. Far from it, actually. It's a trait that calls for vulnerability in a cold-hearted world. Sensitive people have a warm heart, still that hasn't hardened in a world that often demands it or demands you to stay silent and to not show emotion and to be tough. Being in tune with your emotions is, in my own experience, an advantage,” McNeil said. “Not feeling them or suppressing them, I find, makes you very closed off, makes you super cold, and the little time and the little regard that you have for yourself and your own well-being.”
Why is it good to be sensitive?
Ultimately, McNeil believes that being sensitive is a significant part of living an authentic existence because it means that you have the opportunity to be in touch with yourself and to experience the world in all of its intensity. This also allows you to change and evolve because you are in tune with yourself. In McNeil's eyes, those who hold back their feelings and refuse to dive deep into themselves are shutting themselves off from the totality of life and the opportunity to change.
“So the next time someone says you're too sensitive, understand that they're more than likely have suppressed emotions or things that they choose not to face within themselves or within their own world,” McNeil ends his video.
While people may judge one another for how sensitive they are, psychologist Elaine Aron says that a subset of the population are HSPs or Highly Sensitive Persons. She says these people are high in a personality trait known as sensory-processing sensitivity (SPS). Those with high levels of SPS display stronger reactions to external stimuli, pain, hunger, and light, while experiencing emotional sensitivity and having a complex inner life.
Those who criticize others for being too sensitive should look at McNeil’s video as an invitation to question whether they’ve shut themselves off from the world. And, if so, what are they trying to avoid? Who’s the truly sensitive person, those who have run from all feelings or those who accept the totality of existence with open arms?