When emotions get too high, I resort to sarcasm. Sarcasm I get. I understand it. When I'm sad, sometimes I want to be comforted and sometimes I want to be left alone. I guess that's part of where my issue comes in. I don't know what's expected of me. A friend of mine and I were talking about it. She told me that when her mother was dying, she emailed all her friends and told them she didn't want to talk about it and she didn't want people fawning over her. That's the kind of thing I need. Tell me what you want me to do. Do you need someone to sit and watch you cry? I can do it. I'd be uncomfortable, but I can surely do it. Need someone to get you drunk. I'm happy to do that! Need people to just leave you the hell alone. I'm all over it. I honestly just need it spelled out. I'm not opposed to giving a comforting hug. I need them, too. I won't completely ignore the situation. I'll offer my support, but please tell me exactly what you need as support. If you don't, here's what's going to happen, and I'm putting this out there so there are no surprises, I'm going to tell you how sorry I am (and I truly am, for whatever it is that is upsetting you. Then, if the situation calls for it, I will give you a hug. After that, I'm done. That's where you need to come and tell me what you need. "Can we talk?" "Let's go get drinks" "I want to be left alone" Whatever it is is fine, tell me. And here's my return deal, I'll tell you. About 90% of the time, I don't want to talk about whatever is bothering me. I want to either wallow or forget it. If I want to wallow, I'll tell you that I need coffee or something stronger. If I want to forget it, I just need someone around doing anything to keep my mind off of it. On that rare chance I want to share, you'll know because I'll actually start talking about it.
So that's the deal. I suck with high emotional situations unless I'm specifically told how to act. You tell me and I'll tell you. Unless you're Husband. Then all bets are off. You just need to be a mind reader of what I want and I'll force you to talk about how you are feeling about every last second of your life.