Your Emotional Tag Is Showing

We all have that one friend. The one who’ll quietly lean in at brunch and whisper, “Your bra strap’s doing a runner,” or “There’s spinach staging a protest in your teeth.”

But the real MVP? That’s the friend who’ll tell you when your emotional tag is sticking out the back of your metaphorical shirt.

You know the tag. The one that reads things like:

  • Prone to spiralling when hungry

  • May cry if someone says “no worries” in the wrong tone

  • Needs reassurance that being left off the group chat was an admin error, not a personality assessment

  • Handle with snacks

Most of us walk around with these invisible little labels flapping about in the breeze of life, thinking we’re very composed and mysterious. Meanwhile, everyone else can clearly see that your “I’m fine” tag is practically waving semaphore.

A good friend will gently tuck your emotional tag back in.

A great friend will say:

“Sweetheart, that thing is sticking up like a meerkat on high alert. Come here.”

They won’t shame you or judge you—they just won’t let you walk into your day with your vulnerability flapping around, catching on door handles and office politics.

They’re the friend who texts: “You seem… crunchy. Drink water.” Or: “Whatever story your brain is telling you right now is probably not the real one.” Or, my personal favourite: “Do you want truth, validation, or snacks? I can provide all three.”

These are the people who help us stay stitched together. Not by fixing us, or ironing us flat, but by noticing the little things we forget to notice about ourselves. The stuff that’s obvious from behind—because, let’s be honest, we rarely check our emotional rear view.

So here’s to the tag-tuckers. The friends who don’t let you present to the board with your “Anxious but trying” label proudly waving. The ones who love you enough to say, “You’re spiralling a bit, babe,” without making it weird.

May we have these friends. May we be these friends. And may all our emotional tags be tucked away safely… or at the very least, matched to the right outfit.

Gayle Smerdon