By Melanie Froemke, LCSW, RPT-S, e-RYT200
July 27, 2024
[Spoiler Alert] If you haven’t yet seen this film and don’t WANT to know what happens, stop reading. If this might encourage you or some family members to see the film, then read on! Although as the top-grossing animated film of all time, perhaps you’ve already seen “Inside Out 2,” or heard about it from a friend. If so, I’d love to know your thoughts! Send ‘em my way.
In a session with a client* this week, they asked me if I’d seen “Inside Out 2.” I was grateful for the opportunity to talk about what I thought was a great movie! Of course, as a therapist, I’m a bit biased- I appreciate the wider exposure for all emotions- and “Inside Out 2” introduces us to three new emotions: anxiety, ennui, embarrassment, and envy. The film introduced the emotions as a new set of emotions- like a new deck of cards brought out with puberty. As a therapist who works with kids, I tend to disagree, but understand that these emotions may be exacerbated - or felt more often at a time when kids are trying to figure out where and how they fit in their world alongside a healthy dose of separating from parents/authority figures in their lives (I like to refer to the process individuating).
For this client, it was a great way to SEE the different emotions as different “parts,” and specifically seeing Anxiety take the controls. They told me that it felt exactly like what happens for them in their personal life, when anxiety takes over. When that happened in the movie, we could see that it wasn’t easy for Riley, the main character. Seeing “inside” of someone else’s emotions can be validating- to know that we’re not the only ones who experience emotions in this way!
It was also powerful to see the other “parts” band together and build up the character’s resources, to essentially shift anxiety off-line. We too, in real life- through therapy and self-work - can build our own inner resources and “parts” of ourselves as strengths- to step in when we need it. Strengths such as calm, connection, creativity, compassion, clarity, curiosity, confidence and courage (our “8 C’s) can all be strengthened to be our inner resources when needed.
The film also touched on what I consider to be an important aspect of growing up, and frankly, of living in this world for all of us: one’s sense of Self. As a therapist who often integrates Internal Family Systems (IFS), acknowledging that we all have parts, but our (capital “S”) Self is who we are and how we are able to show up in the world when we are our most grounded, wise Self. These 8C’s can be a way to see ourselves with a focus on our strengths when the negative takes over (we are, in fact, human after all!). In the film, we see the character, Riley, shutting down her strong sense of Self when anxiety and difficult emotions take the control panel of her brain and body. Again, it can be validating to see HOW this happens, which can bring more awareness (and possibly great parent/child discussions about emotions and our sense of Self) to this internal struggle and process when we know how to identify it and name it. After all, quoting one of my favorite psychologists, Dan Siegel, PhD, “name it to tame it!”
Overall, I give this film a high recommendation for these reasons. It’s the PhD-emotional level follow-up to “Inside Out,” which introduced us to more “basic” emotions: joy, sadness, fear, anger, and disgust. A great way to spend a hot or rainy summer afternoon!
*this blog was published with permission from the aforementioned client, even though no identifying information was disclosed.
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