Hello, host!
This is the second half of yesterday's content and the continuation of the answer, the second half of the third part—understanding yourself and seeking change, starting with the questions left over from yesterday: Can you see the choices you've made in this matter and what needs they're actually fulfilling? Do you know why you have such needs?
I'll still answer according to my thoughts here, but please ignore anything inappropriate.
Know yourself. You don't want to be excluded or hated. You're afraid of being rejected and disliked by everyone. This fear is almost overwhelming. It fills your entire mental space. This makes it hard for you to understand your true situation or the true situation of your environment. It also makes it hard for you to judge what choice is really beneficial to you and beneficial to others.
In a nutshell, you tried to avoid being disliked or rejected by others, but you misjudged how others would react. You chose a solution that was beyond your ability and control, which only made things worse. You also failed to achieve your goal of not disturbing the class.
It makes me sad to see how much you need to be accepted and liked. It's sad to see how afraid you are of not being liked and accepted that you don't even directly express your most basic needs! What kind of environment did you grow up in that made you so afraid of being hated and rejected?
I say this because eating, drinking, defecating, sleeping, and playing are the most basic human needs, which can be naturally felt and expressed. For example, babies express themselves by crying, and toddlers can say it when their language develops.
Why don't people speak up for their needs? It's simply because they can't. We have to follow social norms (social expectations of human behavior, such as not urinating in public) to fit in, but we can differentiate according to the specific situation (a living person cannot be suffocated by urine).
Kids who are raised with excessive and indiscriminate discipline tend to develop this way. They learn that rules are to be followed no matter what, that their personal needs in special circumstances will be considered troublesome, and that they will be considered bad children if they mention their needs. They also learn to associate their needs with shame.
Put simply, you've been taught to see your legitimate needs as a nuisance to others and as something that shouldn't be done. This will lead to rejection and a lack of love. You've given the meaning of "annoying and shameful" to the need to go to the toilet during class. I'm sure you've experienced this more than once, although the need may not be to go to the toilet, so you can bear with it.
Think back to other experiences where you've chosen to endure physical pain or needs, like staying up late to finish your homework.
You ignore or deny the voice of "I need..." that comes from your body, and use your mind to say "no, no, no" to your body. You tell it to stay out of the way, because you have more important things to do here. Just like this time, when you told yourself to bear with it, this habitual suppression of your needs will make many of your feelings about your body less clear, and you will lose a precise judgment of your tolerance limits and control capabilities.
All this mental activity is invisible and incomprehensible to others. It happens so quickly that even you can't notice it, so it's also difficult for others to understand after it has happened. I suspect that even your mother may find this hard to believe. The instinctive reaction in the minds of most people is probably, "What's wrong with you...how could you...?"
Meanwhile, the fact that others have a hard time understanding what you're going through also means that your judgment of others and the environment is also biased. After all, in other people's eyes, being late for the toilet seems like no big deal, and asking for time off to go to the toilet in class also seems like no big deal. This means that being late for the toilet or asking for time off to go to the toilet due to an urgent need will not lead to any catastrophic and unbearable results. Everyone thinks that it is a very normal and natural thing to go to the toilet as soon as you feel the urge. There is nothing unacceptable about it. On the contrary, it is difficult to accept being unable to hold it in and suffering from incontinence – after all, a living person cannot be held back by urine!
This is what's really going on in your environment.
Look for ways to change your mindset. Once you understand the psychological process, it's time to acknowledge your feelings and then look for ways to improve your self-soothing. Learning to love yourself is a great place to start.
Chances are, you don't want to become the person who always suppresses their own needs and feels ashamed of them. Think about what kind of harsh and disapproving environment you were raised in that made you develop such a way of thinking. You'll probably realize that there's nothing wrong with this way of thinking. This part requires you to constantly understand yourself through life and learning. No one else can understand you or give you comfort (to be honest, no one else is obliged to, although I really hope someone can understand and comfort you), but you can use exploration to give yourself understanding.
Go and reassure the child who is so scared that they can't even go to the toilet without crying. Tell yourself, "I know how you feel. I know you're afraid of not being liked. We all are." Then tell yourself, "But that fear is because we didn't know much as children. It's different now. Many things are actually not as scary as we feel. Let's take a look at what the really unacceptable consequences would be if we made choices that met our needs. In fact, the consequences really aren't that scary."
Use the time machine to picture every step along the way. What choices do you have and what are the possible outcomes? Keep thinking until you realize that you really have nothing to fear.
For instance, picture what you could have done before the class started. Chances are, you were late for the bathroom and the teacher wasn't happy. Since the open class was attended by the head of the school and other teachers, everyone was watching you, which made you feel embarrassed about being late. But what if?
Is there a chance the teacher will criticize you in front of everyone? Or give you a harsh critique after class?
For instance, if you ask the teacher for leave during class, they'll be annoyed and your classmates will laugh at you. After class, the teacher will also give you a hard time and think you're causing trouble on purpose.
What other results could there be?
The key thing to remember is that these consequences are unpleasant, but unpleasant and whether you can handle them are not the same thing. You're ridiculed, criticized, and exposed in public, which is stressful and frightening. But are these fears more important than your basic needs and feelings? Furthermore, what does it say about you that you choose to tolerate the urge to go to the bathroom?
It means that you're more concerned with how your teachers and classmates will react than you are with your own needs and feelings. You're more worried about keeping them happy than you are about your own urgent needs.
The reality is quite different. Even if you get some criticism for being late, you can explain afterwards.
Or maybe you don't even have to explain. Criticism can be upsetting, but it doesn't have to be a big deal. Just as if you had to go to the bathroom in the middle of class, people might laugh or you might feel embarrassed, but it doesn't have to be a catastrophe. After the criticism, the laughing, and your upset, the matter will be over and life will go on as normal, right?
The reality is that you'll probably yell "Report" at the door because you're late because you had to use the bathroom. The teacher will let you quickly go back to your seat to continue the class so as not to interrupt the flow. If you take a leave of absence in the middle of class to say that you can't hold it in any longer and have to go to the bathroom (and even leave without waiting for the teacher's permission), there will be no consequences.
This really isn't as embarrassing as you think, and it really won't cause everyone to hate and reject you. No one will think that it's more important for public classes not to be interrupted by your urgent need to use the bathroom—we've all been in a hurry before. You being late or taking a leave of absence will instead be understood by everyone.
It's better to either be late from the start or take a leave of absence in the middle. This kind of reflection, recognition, and seeking for change is training yourself to correct your mistakes. It's about correcting the past mistake of always considering the opinions and needs of others more important than your own feelings. If you continue to train yourself like this, in the future when you encounter similar emergencies or other situations where your own needs conflict with the needs of others, you will first take care of your own feelings and not worry about what others think. Remember that it is precisely because you are afraid of affecting others that you ignore your own feelings, which in turn causes a greater impact on others. Learn from this and put your own feelings and needs in a more important position. This is the beginning of loving yourself.
If we take care of ourselves, we can better take care of others.
I hope you can make this change. I also think that getting reliable psychological counseling can help you make the changes you need to make.
I just wanted to say that I love you, and I love the world too.
Comments
I'm really sorry that you're going through this. It sounds incredibly tough. The incident was not your fault, and everyone has moments of uncontrollable accidents. Remember, it's okay to take a break when you need one; no one should feel ashamed for needing to use the bathroom.
This situation must have been so embarrassing for you, but it's important to know that accidents happen to everyone. What matters is how we move forward from here. Maybe talking to a counselor could help you process your feelings about what happened.
It's completely understandable to feel embarrassed after something like that. But remember, most people are more focused on their own lives than on judging others. You might find that returning to school will be easier than you think as classmates may have already moved on.
Accidents like this can happen to anyone, and it doesn't define who you are or your worth. If you're worried about going back, maybe start by talking to a trusted teacher or friend at school. They can offer support and help make your return a little smoother.
That must have been such a hard moment for you. I think seeking counseling is a great idea; they can provide you with strategies to cope with any anxiety about returning to school. Also, consider speaking with your parents or guardians for additional support.