PixelNomadWould you ever call your son a disappointment?
Yes, assuming they have disappointed me.
It’s normal to express your emotions.
It’s normal to express emotions and it’s good to learn to first process them properly and then express them in a healthy way that is not harmful for others.
Yeah, no.
This ‘do no harm’ shit is nothing more than toxic positivity.
Pain is part of life. Learn to deal with it and stop trying to avoid it pathologically. You should feel bad for disappointing people.
There can be both toxic positivity and toxic negativity. It’s good to be aware you can do damage with words. It greatly depends on the situation and words and nonverbal language used. I also feel like saying you’re disappointed by the son’s concrete behaviour is ok, while saying he’s a disappointment (in his whole) is a heavy caliber - maybe the meaning varies regionally or something?
someone’s entire life can legitimately be a disappointment.
and they should be forced to acknowledge that. especially if they want to improve it.
Yep, that can be an extreme case where it could be used. I think it gets used by abusive or just clueless parents more often though.