Feeling Empty Inside: Have You Lost Touch with Yourself?

You feel it right in the center of your chest. You don’t know where it came from or maybe even where it started, but you can feel the emptiness like it’s a tangible object within your grasp. You aren’t sure whether it’s boredom, sadness, or melancholy.

Maybe it’s a little bit of all of those things and some extras thrown in for good measure. It isn’t an uncommon feeling, and it is real and valid. Even though it can be overwhelming, you can manage it.

The key to overcoming the empty feeling inside is uncovering the cause of that emptiness. Some people experience the empty feeling for a few days before it passes, while others feel it hanging on for much longer. If it’s something you are struggling with consistently, it’s something you need to address.

Why do you feel empty?

It can be a manifestation of loneliness, it can be down to a lack of motivation or it can be confusion about your goals or life plan. The latter is a clear issue of being out of touch with yourself. There are many situations, events, and life stages that require self-reflection. And those moments in your life may be causing a feeling of emptiness.

It isn’t uncommon for a person to lose touch with themselves from time to time. Having no insight into your inner workings can even lead to an empty feeling that lingers. You could call this living without purpose. Ultimately, it means that you don’t have clarity on who you are or what you should be doing.

It’s causing you to feel empty inside because you are so disconnected from your inner life. There are a hundred different things that can trigger this loss — you may lose touch with yourself because you have been consumed by a relationship. You may lose parts of yourself to a demanding job or a consuming friendship. It may be that you have unresolved trauma from your past.

Feelings of emptiness and melancholy can be down to an unexplored grief or trauma. If you experienced a painful event in your childhood and you didn’t have professional help to deal with it, it could result in a feeling of disconnection.

Unfortunately, many people were raised to avoid talking about their emotions and those emotions stay with them for so long that they don’t realize they have lost touch with themselves because they never really got in touch in the first place. Though it will be painful, addressing the past will help you process it. In the process of addressing the event, you will gain insight into yourself and get back in touch with you. If it is a profoundly upsetting event or you are triggered by the thought of it, you should seek assistance from a mental health professional to handle it properly.

Busy people often lose touch with themselves and feel empty as a result. Parents put their children’s needs first and in doing so, lose a part of themselves. This can lead to feelings of emptiness as they lose touch. Sometimes people convince themselves they feel happy when they make other people happy.

But you can’t do this at the expense of yourself. Everyone deserves care and support, that includes you. If you allow your needs to go unfulfilled, you will lose touch with yourself, and it will lead to feelings of emptiness. It’s a form of self-abandonment. When you defer your needs for so long, it can only end one way — emptiness.

There is another easy way to lose touch with yourself and it’s through the content you consume. If you follow lifestyle brands or celebrities on social media, you will see a picture-perfect view of what life can be. That isn’t their reality, they are showing you the highlight reel. The same way you probably share your highlights.

Nobody is living a perfect life, but if you believe they are, you might start making unfair comparisons. When you make unfair comparisons, it can push you to make decisions that further material gains rather than what’s truly in your heart.

If you don’t have close friendships, you run the risk of losing sight of who you are. We need friends to keep us rooted, we need them to bounce around our ideas. Friends provide us with support, emotional intimacy, company, and active listening.

They are sounding boards and when you share your heart with them, it’s a form of self-reflection but with a guide who knows you incredibly well. If you don’t have significant friendships, it’s easy to lose sight of who you are.

It would be appropriate, at this point, to highlight the difference between depression and a feeling of emptiness. Depression is a recognized mental health disorder. If you are suffering from depression, you may feel persistently sad, have sleep issues, lack motivation, feel shame or guilt, feel hopeless and worthless, or struggle with focus. Feeling empty inside could be a sign of depression if you are experiencing other symptoms as well.

Overcoming A Feeling of Emptiness

If you notice a change in yourself or you are experiencing a feeling of emptiness, then you need to take appropriate steps to overcome it. In some cases, you may need to pursue professional help. In others, you need to realign yourself with your inner wants and desires. If you feel empty because you have been through a trauma, then a professional will need to guide you through the healing process. If you feel empty because you lost your job after allowing it to consume you or you were wrapped up in a relationship that ended, these might be realignments you can handle on your own.

You can start by acknowledging the emptiness you feel. It’s worth remembering that you are doing the best you can and even though you might feel guilty, you don’t need to. Get back in touch with who you are and what you truly want. Explore your emotions, get in touch with your feelings, and get to know yourself again.