like, decoding our slang is literally a trauma response
tw: generational cringe. so a therapist finally confirmed what we all knew: our language is a vibe check on reality itself. if you don't get why we're 'delulu', it's because our words are a coping mechanism for late-stage capitalism. it's not our fault you haven't done the work.
tw: emotional labor, the economy, boomer confusion
um, hi. so i just read this thing and i'm literally shaking. a psychotherapist is finally saying what i've been trying to articulate in my notes app for, like, ever. our slang isn't just 'slang.' it's a trauma-informed lexicon. it's a boundary. it's a safe space we built with our words because the world gave us literally no other safe spaces.
when we say something gave us 'the ick,' that's not just a feeling. that's our nervous system, which is constantly activated by everything from the news cycle to the cost of oat milk, setting a boundary in real time. when we're 'delulu,' it's not being delusional. it's a radical act of manifestation and self-preservation in an economy that is actively gaslighting us into thinking home ownership is, like, a thing.
and the emotional labor of having to explain this? it's honestly draining. it feels like violence to have to translate our lived experience for people who still think a firm handshake is a personality trait. existing is a full-time job with no pay, and then we have to be linguistic tour guides for previous generations? i can't. i literally can't.
to even process this, i have to curate my entire environment. my emotional support water bottle is essential for staying hydrated through the anxiety (you can find the one that literally changed my life on my amazon storefront). and when the vibes get too heavy after explaining what 'rizz' means to my uncle, i have to disassociate under my weighted blanket, which feels like a hug from the universe when you can't afford therapy. it's on my storefront too, obviously.
so, yeah. our slang is an inside joke with ourselves because sometimes that's the only friend we have. it's layered and nuanced because our trauma is layered and nuanced. maybe instead of asking us to define 'bet,' you could, like, hold space for the fact that we're just trying to survive the vibe shift. k?
Reader Discussion (12)
If I closed a ticket with 'the vibes are off on server 3,' I'd be looking for a new job. Call it what you want, but we need clear, professional communication to get things done. This doesn't seem sustainable in a technical environment.
The pivot from 'our words are a trauma response' to an Amazon storefront link is a masterclass. I have to respect the hustle. Monetizing lived experience is the final frontier of personal branding.
This is a really valuable perspective for our inter-generational synergy efforts. I'm going to forward this to the DEI committee as a potential topic for our next Lunch & Learn. We need to foster more psychological safety in our communication.
This isn't trauma, it's just standard sociolinguistic evolution. Every younger generation creates an in-group lexicon to establish identity. Framing it as a unique pathological response is historically illiterate.
Actually, the term 'gaslighting' has a very specific definition relating to psychological manipulation to make someone question their own reality. Applying it to a macroeconomic system dilutes the term's original clinical meaning.
We had sarcasm and apathy and we didn't need to write a dissertation about it. We just got on with it. Whatever.
We tried to make 'adulting' a thing and all we got were articles blaming us for killing the napkin industry. It's the same cycle, just with new words and a better affiliate marketing strategy.
Labeling an entire generational slang system 'trauma-informed' is a massive overstatement that isn't supported by any literature I've seen. Is this 'psychotherapist' cited anywhere? This feels more like a blog post than a clinical observation.
Instead of focusing on the 'why,' let's focus on the workflow. This is a communication bottleneck. We need a shared generational glossary, perhaps integrated into Slack, to maximize synergy and reduce friction.
lol the economy isn't gaslighting you, the fiat monetary system is. stop buying emotional support water bottles and start stacking sats if you want a real 'safe space.' It's not that deep.
I'm not sure I follow most of this, but my daughter bought me a weighted blanket for Christmas. I find it helps me sleep better. I didn't realize it had anything to do with trauma.
Is there an API for this? A service that translates vague business requirements into 'trauma-informed' Jira tickets would unironically save me hours of meetings.