Navigating Adolescent Emotions: Insights from Inside Out 2

Growing up, we experience a lot of emotions: happiness, sadness, anger. We have various emotions inside us, and it's extremely okay to feel them. We are entitled to our own feelings — that's what I learned from Inside Out: to mindfully embrace our emotions rather than suppressing them, because emotions have a purpose.

Now, years later, Pixar has released the second movie of Inside Out, and we are introduced to new emotions.

Inside Out 2 returns and back with the mind of teenager Riley.

Riley, along with her best friends Bree and Grace, receives an invitation to a weekend ice hockey camp with the goal of securing a spot on her school's team, the Firehawks. However, on the eve of the camp, chaos ensues when a "Puberty Alarm" blares, prompting a team of mind workers to storm Headquarters for an emergency upgrade of the emotion console. Then Joy, Sadness, Anger, Fear, and Disgust, who have long managed Riley's emotions find themselves unsure how to react when Anxiety and other new emotions make their entrance.

Anxiety, according to the dictionary, is an uncomfortable feeling of nervousness or worry about something that is happening or might happen in the future. In the movie, Anxiety distinguishes herself saying, “ My job is to keep her safe from things she can’t see.”

The movie progresses with the old emotions being bottled up and sent to the vault, and the new emotions taking charge of Riley's mind. Anxiety takes over the central console of Riley’s brain with a plan designed to make Riley succeed in her Hockey Camp. But, you know what? Anxiety takes over people in real life.. A report from 2023 by data management firm Harmony Healthcare IT shows that 61% of Gen Z have a medically diagnosed anxiety disorder.

According to Reid, anxiety often begins with uncertainty. When your brain senses a lack of sufficient information to make a prediction, it starts crafting narratives—typically unpleasant ones.

As the movie unfolds, Anxiety implants thoughts in Riley's mind like: “If I’m good at hockey, I’ll have friends.” However, these thoughts have a detrimental impact on Riley. The movie progresses and due to Anxiety, Riley experiences a panic attack. Inside her mind, Anxiety whirls around the console frantically, pushing buttons in a frenzy. In that moment, my heart breaks for both Riley and Anxiety. This scene authentically portrays the experience of anxiety and panic attacks. Andwhile some may perceive Anxiety as a villain in the movie, I disagree. Anxiety is not a villain but an emotion earnestly striving to assist Riley.

When Anxiety is panicking and crying, it seems like she doesn't know what to do. I feel deeply sad for her and relate to her situation. She's trying her best to protect Riley, just as we all try. We often put too much pressure on ourselves to be perfect, to please others, and carry burdens that become heavy and suffocating. We yearn to be heard, accepted, and perfect, until the pressure builds and we feel overwhelmed.

There's a line in the movie that profoundly affected me: when Joy realizes her inability to control Anxiety and says, “Maybe when you grow up you feel less joy.” This statement touches me deeply because it's so relatable. As we grow older, responsibilities increase, expectations change, and the simplicity of childhood joy can seem harder to grasp. It resonates with the reality of adult life where joy can sometimes feel elusive amidst the pressures and uncertainties we face.

Towards the end of the movie, Riley chooses Joy. This serves as a reminder that even amidst life's challenges, we can choose Joy—though it may seem elusive at times, it's always within our grasp. No matter how difficult life becomes, we can still find and choose Joy.

This movie is truly exceptional. I first watched Inside Out when I was much younger, and it deeply touched me. Now, watching it as an adult, it still resonates because it transcends being just an animated film. It’s a profound exploration of human emotions, which we all experience, highlighting the significance of every emotion we feel. All emotions are important; each one is valid and defines us—they make us who we are. Whatever our feelings may be, they are valid. It’s normal to feel angry, sad, anxious, or any other emotion when life becomes overwhelming. It’s okay to feel disgusted, embarrassed, envious, bored, nostalgic; it's a normal part of being human. While we have the right to feel whatever emotions arise, we are responsible for how we respond to them. Emotions are valid, but our behavior must be mindful.

Moreover, it's important not to let our emotions consume us entirely. Instead, we should strive to manage them effectively and always be kind to ourselves, regardless of the emotions we experience.