Last night, my husband and I did something we don’t normally do.
Our nightly ritual normally consists of us putting the kids in bed, finishing up the housework, and then slumping down on the couch, mostly with a glass of red wine, to watch something that requires minimal brain activity and triggers little to no emotional response. Some might frown at the idea of two people shutting down that way when the day’s over. But at the end of an overwhelming day, that is how we unwind and empty our buckets.
Last night however, we decided to sit down with a glass of white (only because we’d run out of red) and watch the long-awaited and much anticipated documentary, ‘Sensitive, The Untold Story’. And it was beautiful, and moving, and deep, and I am still choked up thinking about it this morning.
Dr. Elaine Aron announced this project of hers on the 19th of June, 2014 in a wonderful email.
“I am nervous as I write this. This is a big leap for me, a cautious cheapskate,” she begins by saying, and almost fifteen months later, she presented her masterpiece to the world. People tuned in from all over the world to watch the live stream, while many others watched it over the next few days.
The movie was beautiful and informative, filled with interviews conducted with psychotherapists, scientists, parents, young adults, entrepreneurs, leaders, and more. I can’t even describe what it was like to watch all this on a screen, to hear things that I’ve been needing to hear my entire life, to see others going through what we went through as parents. For many, this movie will be self-validating after a lifetime of feeling different and a burden on others. For many others, it will be an eye-opener, shedding light on the reasons why some people seem to cry so easily, or retreat from crowds, or need so much time to recharge.
Throughout the whole movie last night I was teary-eyed. Every time someone said something I could relate to or make me go “ah-ha!” (which was basically everything that was said) I had to work very hard not to lose it completely. The fact that my husband was as excited as I was to see this movie, and sat through the whole thing, nodding in agreement and finally concluding that we need to send out the DVD to every school we know, made me all the more emotional.
“… ’cause without having read your book I would continue to feel like an insane person.”
As the mother of a highly sensitive child, this movie, or rather this movement fills my heart with joy. There is nothing like having to prove to others that there is nothing wrong with your child when they are so convinced that there is. Nothing can be as heartbreaking as seeing a child be so unfairly misjudged by friends, family and worst of all, teachers who have no idea what a highly sensitive child (HSC) is or that 20% of the population is actually highly sensitive. And to be able to witness the world start to change the way it is, and to see more and more people work so hard and with such passion to spread the word, I am hopeful that one day we will all be better able to understand and work with one another, combining our strengths to make this world a better place.
“1.4 Billion People are Highly Sensitive”
So last night we didn’t end up shutting down like we do on most nights. Even though we didn’t have much left to give, we watched something that made us think deeply about ourselves, our children, and the world; something that triggered so many emotions it was exhausting and exhilarating at the same time; something we desperately want to share with everyone we know in the hope that it might make them feel the way it made us feel.
And it was more than worth it.
Follow Sensitive The Movie to stay tuned for information the DVD release date and the second documentary on highly sensitive children! I am so exited about that one!
If you’ve seen the movie, please share your thoughts with us in the comments section below!
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