LibraryScenariosWhen emotional expression gets mixed messages
Scenario

When emotional expression gets mixed messages

My wife wants me to be more emotional but when I get angry she tells me to calm down, and I'm confused about what she actually wants.

Juana
Online
The coach is replying

More people experience this than they realize.

What we've seen

Requests for male emotional availability often come with unexamined limitations that create confusion about acceptable expression.

Ideas that help explain it
Worth thinking about

“Where Are You with Masculinity — constructed and contested?”

If this sounds familiar, the Library can help you find the bigger picture.