September 4th – Toxic

by annemariedemyen, posted in A Piece of My Mind - September 2021

Today the ‘Piece of My Mind’ that I am sharing is the piece that shoots sharp stabbing pains down my spine every time I hear the word ‘toxic’ these days.

Toxic Relationships Toxic People Toxic Workplace Toxic Productivity Toxic Masculinity Toxic Feminity

Do people even remember what the word means? Do people realize that if you take a powerful word and use it in every second sentence it loses its power?  Do people have any idea what constant exaggeration does to their overall credibility? Do people understand how damaging words can be?

I am relatively ‘aged‘.   I have been challenged by life – during a time when one was expected to rise to the challenge.    I have experienced difficult situations, dysfunctional relationships, disturbing people.  I did what people did at the time.    I worked my way through it or I walked away from it – with respect and dignity.

These days, toxic is the final word for today’s  challenging situations and relationships.    From ‘toxic’ there is nowhere to go – no discussion, no redemption, no healing, no compassion, no forgiveness, no understanding, no hope,  no closure – there is nothing.    Everyone loses. 

We need to change that outcome. We need to dial back the rhetoric and re-open the door to dialogue, growth, and empowerment. We deserve that.

Think about it 😉

That is my ‘Piece of Mind’ for the day. Whether you agree, or not, you are more than welcome to share your thoughts in the comment section.

Wishing everyone a good weekend. Take care and see you tomorrow. 💞

17 thoughts on “September 4th – Toxic”

  3. Our wonderful English language has been torn and tattered so much from what it was decades ago, it makes me mad.

    Words and phrases have been politicised so badly. And the constant use of the word Like every other word makes me wanna slap people sometimes. Stop it! Sorry, being honest…

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  7. Some words definitely get overused, I have to agree. And really, any thinking adult should be able to separate the behaviour from the person. Still there are certain individuals I have experienced that seem to scream “toxic”…. a certain former president spring to mind. But isn’t it sad that there are people who are so stunted in life that they never seem to develop empathy or compassion. Perhaps they’ve experienced a lot of emotional, physical, sexual, psychological, or some other kind of abuse? I also have to say I have experienced very few people whom I would label as “toxic”….even as I type that I’m thinking to myself that labeling is just wrong – always. How can we know what’s inside another’s thoughts, hearts, and souls? We cannot so we should avoid labels, even though I know I am guilty of doing just that from time to time. Sigh. Looks like I have a lot to think about and readjust my attitudes. Thanks, Annmarie.

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  8. I hear and read this dehumanizing term so much – and it has personal significance for me and my family. I didn’t want to go into how it has affected us (it would take a book) but I did want to address it as a general issue in our society.

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  12. Thanks for sharing honesty and for making people not alone in living life’s truths. My time I heard the word toxic people was in college. It has resurfaced last year and this year, and it’s indeed a fitting word. We can’t really escape them but we can try to control how we react and just kind of avoid spending more time with toxic people. If it’s from work, we just work, nothing more and lots of prayers that the triggers behave. Happy Sunday.

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