Naming an experience can let people compare what they previously endured alone.

Before something has a name, everyone experiencing it thinks it is particular to them, a personal failing or a private oddity. Once there is a word, people discover that others recognise it, and what felt like an individual defect turns out to be a shared pattern with causes outside any one person.

If you are struggling with something you cannot name, it is worth trying to describe it to someone. The naming can bring real relief. And when you name something for someone else, keep the description close to their experience rather than pushing it into a label that stops the conversation.