Is it healthy to use sites like Fluther as an emotional outlet?

It is indiscreet. The web is not a confessional. Use judgement in what you reveal online or it may come back to haunt you.

In moderation. It’s okay to release your feelings and ask for guidance, but if you do it too much people will write you off as a basket case.

Yes, I believe it is a great outlet, just as writing in a personal journal is.

As part of an emotional balanced diet! Mix it up a bit.

Possibly.

I think as long as it’s only one of several outlets, then it’s healthy. Having only one outlet, regardless of what it is, is not so healthy.

It is better than no outlet at all and it is quite intimate and yet anonymous at the same time.

I think it’s okay as long as you watch what you put out there. Things might come back to haunt you.

In moderation, I think, yeah. I mean, there’re plenty of worse ways to blow off steam out there, after all.

I’d go postal if it weren’t for fluther.

I think it’s fine…go for it…let rip!

I don’t really use fluther as an emotonal outlet, more so, an intellectually and socially stimulating outlet. I have few friends that share my passions for humor, writing, interesting discussion.

I ‘use’ fluther as an extra social outlet when the pickin’s are slim for rewarding real life conversation.

As a ‘mature’ person I don’t need advice, I’ve lived long enough now to know and apply my own advice in most instances. lol

Most being the operative word.

@seazen_

Never say never, but, yes, mostly…never. haha

Not for me. Never. I am still amazed by what some members of the collective wish to share with us. Not only about them personally but their spouses, SO’s, family members, close friends.

As always, I agree with @Coloma and Marwyn.

You can let it out ... why bother [ they have their issues too or maybe a bad day ]

You can find people who can understand you even after some tries .. not all members here are brain damaged so you never know the outcome.

In the context of someone with no other outlet that meets their need to seek understanding, support & validation, it could be one of the healthiest alternatives.

Yes, I agree that it’s certainly not the best way to get this, especially as the only such outlet. BUT, sometimes unless people get just a little bit of validation, their pain/stress is very apt to multiply and wreak havoc on their lives (whether or not it accidentally ‘explodes’). I think, considering the potential severity of such a problem, it’s worth recognizing that – done tactfully & respectfully – it may be a much better way to deal than the alternatives.

[Pain is, for better or worse, a self-focused mindstate, one that centers around the awareness of the pain. Until the pain is addressed somehow, it will be incredibly difficult for a person to set this aside – because focusing on the ‘wound’ is an instinctive attempt to ensure it’s healed promptly. Yes, we’ve all probably experienced this pain-mindstate being maladaptive or expressing itself unhealthily. Yet there’s many circumstances where another’s recognition of the fact that the pain is bad and the cause of it is worth even a moment of undivided attention – in other words, validation – does wonders to diffuse even the most difficult reactions to pain. Once another expresses their recognition of the significance of the person’s pain, the sufferer is much more capable of healing themselves out of this mindstate. I find that dismissing another’s pain, or saying something that implies that it’s their fault (among other things) tends to escalate pain reactions to the maladaptive point – which entirely counteracts the goal behind dismissing the pain, which is usually to get them out of their pain-focused mind-loop & related behavior. This is why validation can be worth a bit of time & inconvenience, even if only for the people who’d otherwise have to deal with a person stuck in this mindstate.]

Certainly, it’s up to the discretion of the community to determine what’s appropriate. But it can’t hurt to factor in the immense benefit of reasonable forms of validation when judging the acceptability of tactful self-disclosure.

Depends at what you put on here. I use it as a emotional outlet majority of the time, even though knowing I have a girlfriend saying she’s willing to listen to me, and I’m willing to do the same..But some of the thing i don’t want to go to for, so I ask my 3rd hand which is fluther…(not saying your my last resort…I have teachers for first, friends for second…and you as last but I take out the first two automatically) but it’s sort of in the middle for me…You just need to watch out…It after all like what others have been saying it will “haunt” you later on in the future. I semi agree.

Why not? It all results in ‘venting’ to speak your mind anonymously to anonymous readers who are here to vent themselves.. Isn’t that better than holding it all in until you eventually explode and do things much worse than allowing your emotions to run amok through print and which may ease your anger to a certain degree when finished..

In another context, from time to time you could most likely receive a bit of criticism from some of the things you vent on in other community forums, so.. if you can’t take criticism and get side tracked in taking things personal by reacting to this criticism (which would open up yet another stressful situation to ‘vent’ over) then you should maybe use these forums to ‘chill’ out instead of heat up.. By venting, you continue to dwell on the subject instead of learning from it then putting it behind you.. it is in essence still affecting you by maintaining your attention.. This is a good place to just chill out as well..

@anartist @KateTheGreat Use caution, think about what you are saying.Then spill your carefully gaurded guts.

Where else can you do that and not be immediately put down?