Secrets: The Urge to Be Understood
An amazing phenomenon—something I’ve always suspected but never been able to prove—has just been documented. Frank Warren began to pass out postcards asking people to mail him their deepest, darkest secrets—things they have never told anyone. He invited them to do it anonymously, of course. His purpose: to relieve their guilt and to help them work through issues, to help them get on with their lives. Results: Months after his experiment ended, the cards still come pouring in to him at the rate of 100-200 a day. The secrets include everything from sexual transgressions to messages such as these: "My grandmother was lonely, and I never wrote her or visited her before she died. I am so sorry."
Good Morning America interviewed author Frank Warren this morning about his book PostSecret and the follow-up, My Secret. His website (http://postsecret.blogspot.com/) creates a safe place for readers to share such secrets and communicate their deepest feelings of guilt, hurt, bewilderment, disappointment, sadness. In short, people long to feel understood, to connect with others about meaningful issues in their lives. 
Why this longing to be understood, yet the fear to communicate openly and honestly about those longings? Many people pay a therapist just to listen—the role friends used to play. Today, many people use the Internet for the same purpose—anonymous listening.
Why do you think people feel better about telling the world via the Internet about intimate things rather than sharing on a personal level with family members and friends? Is it the fear of a negative reaction? Guilt? Judgment? Embarrassment? Time? Braggadocia about their exploits? Your opinions?
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