Struggling to Recognize Emotions: Seeking Advice

yeah you usually learn to suppress emotions when you're young, hurt, and don't talk about it. and society doesn't ever talk about sadness, we always say "good" when people ask "how are you" even if you're having a bad day. to unsuppress, recognize that you're feeling emotional by physical sensations - pit in your stomach, chest tightness - try to find the emotional equivalent with umbrella terms like stressed, frustrated, anxious. then get more specific, like shame, hopelessness, grief, regret. knowing your emotions allow you to fix them more easily.

I completely misread your entire post so I'm commenting again sorry! It's completely normal to have trouble recognising your emotions though. Therapy is a good option for learning strategies. If you don't have access/don't want to go to therapy, you can try mindfulness exercises like meditation and journalling (journalling is my personal favourite!) Sometimes writing things down can be a good way to figure out what's really going on in your head. Good luck on your journey! I'm sorry you're going through all of this.