In therapy , my clients sometimes insist on venting for most of the session. On the surface, this makes sense; therapists are trained listeners, and having a "safe space to vent" can be quite valuable. So, many therapists get used to not only letting, but often encouraging their clients to vent in session. Venting has also become a widely accepted form of stress relief outside of therapy . Whether it's a long phone call with a friend, journaling, or a social media post, the act of "getting it off your chest" is often seen as inherently therapeutic. There is some truth to this. Freud discovered this and labeled it as the "talking cure."
But, while verbally expressing emotion is undeniably important—it's fundamental to how humans self-regulate and socially bond—predictably, to