Word of the day: Alexithymia

There are times when an individual has trouble comprehending or communicating their emotions. He or she might find it hard to put into words how he or she feels or even understand what those emotions are. Talking about the individual's emotions becomes difficult due to an inability to identify his or her emotions. This phenomenon is referred to as alexithymia.This term is mostly used in psychology to refer to a condition whereby an individual experiences challenges processing his or her emotions. It is characterised by a person appearing detached despite having emotions inside him or her. People with alexithymia may also struggle to recognise emotions in others, which can affect relationships and social interactions. Recognizing these internal barriers is the first step toward developing specialised coping strategies that bridge the gap between feeling and expression.Alexithymia is a term used to describe a situation where a person finds it challenging to understand, comprehend, and explain their feelings.The etymology of alexithymia derives from three words of the ancient Greek language: a-, which refers to “absence of,” lexis, which is synonymous with “words,” and thymos, which alludes to “emotion” or “feelings.” The literal meaning of the term is “no words for emotions.”Alexithymia was coined in the 20th century to refer to people who cannot identify or communicate their emotions.