What is embarrassment?

What is embarrassment? Is it a figment of my imagination? No. It’s a feeling — that’s real, I know it. Or is it?

Embarrassment. Is a word kind of like love. It’s a word that has so much meaning, so much control over our decision making and thoughts. It’s something that we cannot touch or see, but feel. The overwhelming feeling we get from things like love or embarrassment, or both, is how we know it’s real. These two feelings, love and embarrassment, in fact — often intertwine. Feelings like embarrassment tend to have a chain reaction of feelings that follow — probably because feelings of embarrassment lead to decisions led by heightened emotions. When we act before we’ve had a chance to reflect on feelings like these, we usually do things we are not proud of and that don’t reflect the people we truly are. So embarrassment often leads to shame. We feel shame because we think that these moments define us but they don’t. A moment of embarrassment is simply a moment of awkwardness. And these moments of awkwardness build character. Navigating through feelings of embarrassment shape who we are. These moments of self-consciousness can even and often lead to self discovery.