Oversharing connects teens

Joy Burns, Opinion Editor

Have you ever been in a situation where you just met a person and 15 seconds into the conversation, they’re already mentioning their personal life, how things aren’t good at home, they might be having a divorce or that they need therapy? It doesn’t seem to matter that you just met them, but they’re just happy because it helps them cope. Unlike gossip or secrets, oversharing is a way for people to reveal an inappropriate amount of detail about their personal life. It’s, way for teens to cope with their situations.

For some people, oversharing can discomfort them and put them in a weird spot. Jesse Tyler the school’s community resource specialist works with students to provide resources and guides them through anything. Even if they do end up oversharing, she doesn’t feel much discomfort

“I don’t usually feel uncomfortable. I just figure that they need to talk to some adult about it, so it’s a good thing. I am a responsible person and a good listener. Plus, I know a lot of resources in the event that they need one,” Tyler said.

But on the other hand, others may feel discomfort when it comes to oversharing for a numerous of reason. They may not know how to respond, or they might just be uncomfortable with the topic.

“When people talk about their intimacy in their love life it’s always weird to me. It makes me feel uncomfortable and surprised sometimes but at the same time not surprised,” Lily Nguyen said.

Teens overshare for a numerous reason. To connect, for their anxiety, to get their thoughts out of their head and more. But teens mainly use oversharing to cope with anything that’s going on.

“I overshare when I’m just talking and then later on realized I dominated the conversation half the time. It’s definitely a self-conscious issue too.” Nathan King said.

Oversharing has been around longer before social media made it to where you could create private stories or rants. But it had definitely evolved throughout the span of time. James Dunn, school’s psychologist believes it has evolved because more people are getting comfortable when it comes to oversharing

“I don’t think it’s new. I think it’s evolving, and people are sharing more because they feel more comfortable doing that. 30 years ago, it was maybe considered taboo or there was something wrong with you. It was definitely look upon on different therefore lots of people and families kept it in. But now I think it’s good because now people are opening up and it’s helping them up more,” Dunn said.