Faux feeling Something done to me
Boxed in
Not a feeling: a thought about what someone did.
Also known as caged, trapped
‘I think I have been left with no room to move or to choose.’
Why it’s not a feeling
Boxed in pictures a situation in which your options have been closed off. It describes the walls you see around you, not what you feel inside them, and it often carries an unspoken ‘you boxed me in’. Inside the box there might be anxiety, fear or a frustration pushing to get out.
Feelings underneath
Needs
Saying it as a feeling
‘I feel boxed in.’
When you booked the holiday for the week of my exams without checking with me first, I felt anxious and frustrated, because I need choice and autonomy.