How much do you curse and why?

On a day-to-day basis, I normally don’t curse. At least, I don’t do it explicitly. Out of habit, I usually resort to “frick” or “darn it” as euphemisms for what I really mean. In Champaign, there are a few middle schools that people know about: Franklin, Jefferson, Edison, and Next Generation. Then there’s Countryside, the tiny K-8 school that I went to. Being a private school, there were some weird rules (though I’m sure there were interesting school rules elsewhere as well), such as only being able to go to the bathroom if there were less than two people in your grade in the bathroom. The most influential rule, however, was probably the “no swearing” rule that the administrators implemented in 7th grade. 

I remember vividly one day when an administrator came into Core 1 English and took half of our class away to the music room, where they had a talk about behavior. In PE, all the students began discussing the rules that had been outlined in the harsh talk, namely the “ban” on swearing that would prevent us from even saying euphemisms like “frick.”

Of course, my fellow students and I didn’t follow these rules perfectly. Especially when the school first implemented the rule, I remember having to think about how to enunciate my frustrations without breaking the rule. My friends and I danced around the rules, using modifications of banned words like “fik” instead of “frick.” Although I was quite pleased with myself at the time, my immaturity in middle school, especially around swearing, was really one of the lower points in my school experience. 

Other than the rule at Countryside, another major reason why I don’t swear much is because of my friend circle. When my friends and I hang out, I see no reason to curse as it doesn’t really come with an upside. Because some of my friends and I were“shielded” for so long from curse words, we just developed our habits towards using euphemisms and avoiding swearing. Along with friends, the negative perception that society has on people who swear has kept me from ever really “getting into it.” (For better or for worse.)

At this point, you may be wondering about how often I use these euphemisms. Honestly, the answer is quite a bit. Whenever I get frustrated, I gravitate towards “oh my god” or “freaking heck,” and I happen to get frustrated quite often. With social media usage continually increasing, I’ve gravitated to using capital letters to express my frustrations when chatting. 

Sometimes, I feel like my tendency to avoid explicit swear words hinders me from truly expressing my feelings. From my limited point of view, I can imagine the liberating feeling when freely enunciating my true emotions. Additionally, my tendency to avoid explicit swear words has also led me to overreact when I hear those words spoken aloud in conversation. I’ve considered trying to “get into” using swear words to liberate my mindset, but I just can’t shake the uncomfortability that comes with using those explicit curse words. Over time, I’ve come to understand that just like culture or heritage, my mindset around swearing defines me, and I’m not willing to change that.