Space or Emotional Withdrawal? What’s the Difference?
Men’s Therapy Tip: Space or Emotional Withdrawal? What’s the Difference? Conflict can activate us quickly. Your heart rate increases. Your thoughts speed up. You become defensive, frustrated, angry, anxious, or overwhelmed. At that point, continuing the conversation may not actually help. Sometimes the healthiest thing you can do is take space . But there is an important difference between taking a healthy timeout and emotionally withdrawing from the relationship. In my work as a Los Angeles men’s therapist providing men’s therapy in West LA , I often help men recognize that stepping away from conflict is not necessarily avoidance. In fact, taking a break can be an important emotional-regulation skill. The key question is: Are you taking space so you can come back more grounded—or are you using space to avoid coming back at all? Taking Space Can Be Healthy When emotions become intense, the nervous system can move into a protective state. You may notice: anger anxiety defensiveness phy...