Everyone wants to feel understood

It’s fundamental. Hard wired. Begins at birth.


Our relationships depend on it.


Our sense of belonging depends on it.


Our mental wellbeing depends on it.


Our self-identity depends on it.

Therapists and counsellors have long recognised that the need to be understood runs deep within us and has consequences if ignored. It’s integral to our nature. Making sure that clients feel ‘unconditionally’ understood is itself central to the therapeutic process.

On a daily level, however, it’s easy to overlook the critical role that feeling understood plays in our

lives. 

Why feeling understood matters so much

Feeling understood is important because it’s an essential ingredient of so many of the things we value highly in life, from having productive relationships to enjoying good mental health. Feeling understood is uniquely powerful because it meets several core human needs at once.

Better relationships

Ask anyone what they want from a partner, and they’ll say “I want to be understood.” Feeling understood is the lifeblood of successful relationships. This is true of all kinds of partnerships - intimate, family, social and work-related.


Feeling understood makes you feel closer to people and lowers defensiveness. It leads to better communication and fewer conflicts. People who feel understood argue less and collaborate more.


On a practical level, being understood gets you the support you actually need. If someone understands you, they can provide the right kind of help rather than simply respond with well meaning but often unwanted advice.

Stronger sense of belonging

As social creatures we crave the sense of belonging, of being part of a wider group. This is impossible unless you feel understood by others in the group. Feeling understood creates a sense connection. When someone really ‘gets’ you, it confirms you’re not alone. It strengthens bonds and generates closeness. ‘It’s us’ rather than ‘me vs. the world’.

More robust self-identity

Feeling understood validates your experiences. It reassures you that your feelings and perceptions are legitimate and make sense to others.


It supports your identity and self-worth. When others see you accurately, it helps you see yourself more clearly. This supports a stable sense of identity and generates self-esteem.



Feeling understood offers emotional safety. It tells your nervous system, “I’m safe here.” You can relax, be honest, and stop hiding parts of yourself.

Better mental health

Feeling understood is the antidote to loneliness and isolation. You can be surrounded by people

and still feel lonely if you don’t feel connected to them. Feeling understood counters this

emotional deficit.


Feeling understood provides a barrier against depression. The symptoms of the inner loneliness caused by a chronic deficit of feeling understood are almost identical to those of depression. Ensuring that you feel understood by the people you share your life with is the best preventative there is.


Shared understanding makes stress and anxiety easier to bear. “I’m going through this alone” becomes “We’re facing this together”.

We aim to change that with our Feel Understood project, a not-for-profit venture with the sole aim of promoting better understanding in our daily lives. Our website makes it easy for you to explore the practical psychology behind the phenomenon of feeling understood (or not). And, importantly, to discover ways of making your life have more feeling understood in it, and less feeling not understood.

Explore our work

January 5, 2026
Feeling understood is one of the most basic human needs, yet it’s something many of us experience far less often than we expect. We can be surrounded by people, in long-standing relationships or familiar settings, and still feel unseen or misunderstood. When understanding is missing, conversations become harder, distance grows quietly, and we may stop trying to explain ourselves at all. FeelUnderstood explores this experience from multiple angles — psychological, relational, and everyday. Rather than offering advice or solutions, the project is interested in noticing how understanding actually works: what it feels like when it’s present, what happens when it breaks down, and why it can be so difficult to sustain in modern life. Much of this unfolds in ordinary moments, through the way we listen, respond, and make sense of one another. Across essays, conversations, and guided reflections, the aim is to create space for clarity rather than answers. Not to diagnose or improve, but to help people recognise their own experience more precisely. Sometimes, simply naming what’s missing — or noticing where understanding already exists — is enough to change how a situation is held, even if nothing else changes at all.
January 5, 2026
Feeling understood is one of the most basic human needs, yet it’s something many of us experience far less often than we expect. We can be surrounded by people, in long-standing relationships or familiar settings, and still feel unseen or misunderstood. When understanding is missing, conversations become harder, distance grows quietly, and we may stop trying to explain ourselves at all. FeelUnderstood explores this experience from multiple angles — psychological, relational, and everyday. Rather than offering advice or solutions, the project is interested in noticing how understanding actually works: what it feels like when it’s present, what happens when it breaks down, and why it can be so difficult to sustain in modern life. Much of this unfolds in ordinary moments, through the way we listen, respond, and make sense of one another. Across essays, conversations, and guided reflections, the aim is to create space for clarity rather than answers. Not to diagnose or improve, but to help people recognise their own experience more precisely. Sometimes, simply naming what’s missing — or noticing where understanding already exists — is enough to change how a situation is held, even if nothing else changes at all.
January 5, 2026
Feeling understood is one of the most basic human needs, yet it’s something many of us experience far less often than we expect. We can be surrounded by people, in long-standing relationships or familiar settings, and still feel unseen or misunderstood. When understanding is missing, conversations become harder, distance grows quietly, and we may stop trying to explain ourselves at all. FeelUnderstood explores this experience from multiple angles — psychological, relational, and everyday. Rather than offering advice or solutions, the project is interested in noticing how understanding actually works: what it feels like when it’s present, what happens when it breaks down, and why it can be so difficult to sustain in modern life. Much of this unfolds in ordinary moments, through the way we listen, respond, and make sense of one another. Across essays, conversations, and guided reflections, the aim is to create space for clarity rather than answers. Not to diagnose or improve, but to help people recognise their own experience more precisely. Sometimes, simply naming what’s missing — or noticing where understanding already exists — is enough to change how a situation is held, even if nothing else changes at all.