i also like this description when it comes to emotionally repressed people/characters that have overanalyzed their emotions to the point of not feeling those emotions anymore. they have gone over past situations so many times in their head, labeling the emotions and upset that may have gone along with it only to “move on” after they’re satisfied with their analysis. but they don’t really move on, they just acknowledge the existence of those emotions and don’t work through them.
characters who are emotionally repressed, mellow, and self aware but cannot do anything to reconcile their emotions late at night when they can’t sleep. the anxieties, the sadness, the anger washing over them all in one moment- becoming so overwhelming that they break the feelings apart bit by bit for an explanation of each one. just to feel like they deserve to have those emotions.
sure maybe they have told you terrible things that have happened to them and what they felt at the time, but never do you see the true raw emotions of those experiences. begging you to ask the question of if you know them, or if you know of them.
You know, when I see fictional characters who repress all their emotions, they're usually aloof and very blunt about keeping people at a distance, sometimes to an edgy degree—but what I don't see nearly enough are the emotionally repressed characters who are just…mellow.
Think about it. In real life, the person that's bottling up all their emotions is not the one that's brooding in the corner and snaps at you for trying to befriend them. More often than not, it's that friendly person in your circle who makes easy conversation with you, laughs with you, and listens and gives advice whenever you're upset. But you never see them upset, in fact they seem to have endless patience for you and everything around them—and so you call them their friend, you trust them. And only after months of telling them all your secrets do you realize…
…they've never actually told you anything about themselves.