Salty Sailor Talk
Understanding Our Obsession with Bad Words
Apparently, to be my authentic self, I need to say %$#@ a lot!
I have a great reverence for rich vocabulary, which is why I do not understand my affinity for expletives. I cannot seem to shake my tendency to drop unsavory declarations from my speech patterns. I know I can control it because when I am around certain people, I can abstain from the use of dirty words.
One of my dear friends calls any descriptive use of profanity "salty sailor language." She is a poised, lovely, and articulate lady, so when she utters "sh*t" or the worst yet, "F**K," it makes me feel a bit better. Intrigued by an inability to shake my bad habit, I set out to learn more about our attraction to salty sailor talk.
The Surprising Power of Profanity
Here's what I discovered about those four-letter friends we're taught never to use:
The word "FK" is wonderfully dexterous and can be used as a noun, a verb, an adjective, an interjection, or an adverb.** Not many words can do this. My other favorite word, "sh*t," is almost as nimble and can be used as a noun, intransitive noun, intransitive verb, and an interjection. As nasty as they sound, profane words are powerful and behave differently than other types of language.
Harsh words are potent emotionally and have the power to incite a reaction in us physically, socially, and psychologically. Research implies that profanity is easy to access, and humans do not need to use the language center of the brain to cuss. Quite simply, saying bad words feels good and has a direct effect on our emotional reactions of joy, fear, passion, anger, and agony.
While most language functions (grammar, vocabulary, and comprehension) are located in the left hemisphere of the brain, studies on people with damage to their brains discovered that spontaneous profanity comes instead from the right side of the brain. This evidence comes from patients who had their entire left hemisphere removed, usually to disrupt a fatal seizure condition, a stroke, or a brain tumor. Although a patient may have lost all capacity for intentional language on the left side of the brain, they could still spontaneously and articulately utter expletives out of frustration. This research implies that profanity is easy to access, and we humans do not need to access the language center of the left hemisphere of our brains to swear.
Bad words come from our limbic system, the evolutionary structure that is buried deep in our brains. This is the same structure that we share with primates and mammals. In other words, obscenities are primal and leftover from our caveman days. Swearing helps us survive in the wild and is responsible for the emotional calls, shrieks, cries, and growls that we hear from all animals, including ourselves.
The Science of Swearing
A client recently shared with me, "I used to feel so guilty about swearing. But now I realize it's just my brain's honest response to stress."
FINALLY... Scientific proof that swearing is a primal human noise that can help us to release stress and stand authentically in our truth. I am suddenly feeling better about my potty mouth—aren't you?
While I continue to be mindful of my salty sailor language, as we "glide into the autumn," I am giving myself permission to mutter an occasional spicy blast now and again. These little bursts are just nature's way of releasing angst so we can gracefully navigate life's little storms.
Permission to Be Real
Here's the thing I've learned: Being authentic doesn't mean being crude all the time. But it also doesn't mean sanitizing every thought and feeling to make others comfortable. Sometimes "darn" just doesn't cut it. Sometimes you need the full force of a well-placed expletive to express the magnitude of what you're experiencing. And that's okay. The key is consciousness—knowing when salty sailor talk serves you and when it's just habit. Knowing when it adds emphasis and when it alienates. Knowing the difference between authentic expression and autopilot profanity.
Wishing you a month FULL of descriptively RICH language and life experience!
Maybe a bit of Salty Sailor Talk can help YOU start living a happier life NOW.
Celebrating your courage to speak your truth (however colorful it may be),
#%&, Andrea
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I'm Andrea Mein DeWitt—a leadership coach, author, and self-proclaimed warrior in recovery who helps bold souls reclaim their power and unleash their full potential. After transforming my 32-year career in education into a dynamic coaching practice, I now guide people through my signature NAME, CLAIM AND REFRAME® methodology.
My book Name, Claim & Reframe: Your Path to a Well-Lived Life was featured on the TODAY Show as 2023's best motivational read. Writing from the foggy San Francisco Bay Area, I believe that life's challenges are invitations to discover who you're meant to be.
