202 - Friday Fix: The Difference Between Acting Tough and Being Strong

The Verywell Mind Podcast

Dotdash Media Inc.

Health & Fitness, Self-improvement, Mental Health, Education

5 • 703 Ratings

🗓️ 30 September 2022

⏱️ 14 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

We all act tough sometimes. There are times when acting tough can serve a purpose. There will be times when you need to set your feelings aside and push through something difficult. It’s OK to acknowledge that you feel uncomfortable, to ask for help, and to be vulnerable with other people. In fact, it often takes more strength to acknowledge your feelings or to admit to your mistakes. It can be helpful to stop and ask yourself, “Is what I’m doing right now an example of being strong, or am I just acting tough?” Once you recognize the difference, you can choose to start doing the things that help you grow mentally stronger. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome to the Very Well Mind podcast. We've interviewed over 100 authors, experts, entrepreneurs, athletes, musicians, and others to help you learn strategies to care for your mental health.
0:22.9	This episode is hosted by psychotherapist and bestselling author Amy Morin. Now let's get into the episode.
0:45.5	Okay. You're listening to The Friday Fix.
0:50.3	Every Friday, I share a quick mental strength strategy that can help fix the thoughts,
0:52.7	feelings, and actions that can hold you back in life.
0:54.6	Today I'm talking about the difference between acting tough and being strong. It's something that easily gets confused, and the
1:00.2	misconceptions about mental strength can lead to a lot of unhealthy behavior. First, though,
1:05.1	let me talk about mental toughness. People define mental toughness in lots of different ways.
1:12.9	Sometimes people use mental toughness to describe a healthy behavior, like someone who's persevering through a struggle. At other times, though,
1:18.2	it's used to describe someone who more likely has a really fragile ego, who's just trying to prove to
1:23.6	other people that they're good enough. So I don't know about mental toughness. When people
1:27.6	ask me, is mental strength the same as mental toughness? My answer is, it depends on whose definition
1:33.2	you're looking at. Well, I can't tell you exactly what mental toughness means. I can't tell you what
1:38.1	mental strength is. It's about the way you think, feel, and behave. It involves being able to
1:44.1	respond to unhelpful thoughts in a
1:46.3	healthy way. And then when it comes to the emotional part, it's about knowing that you have choices
1:50.8	and how you manage your emotions. Like, you might allow yourself to feel uncomfortable emotions
1:55.7	while also recognizing that sometimes you need to go ahead and shift your emotional state.
2:01.4	And then the third part about your behavior, that involves taking helpful action,
2:05.6	which depends on the circumstances that you might find yourself in.
2:09.1	In some cases, it might be about pushing yourself to do something really hard.
2:13.1	In other cases, it might involve stepping away from something that's not serving you well.
	...

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