Are your coworkers ‘trauma dumping'? Here's why oversharing happens — and how to handle it

New York Post

19 hours ago

Your coworker came in at 9, overshared by 9:03, and now you know way too much about their breakup and their bowel movements.
Some Gen Z employees are airing out all their drama on the clock — and bosses, coworkers and HR departments are wondering how to put the lid back on the tea kettle.
'It's kind of like you had your one work bestie, and you'd be, like, 'Oh, my God, you'd never guess what I did last night,'' Adriana Lima, a 32-year-old startup manager (not the Brazilian supermodel), told Business Insider.
3 Forget office politics — the real workplace hazard is finding out your cubicle mate's ex is back in the picture and possibly living in her car.
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'Gen Z, in my experience, there seems to be a bit more openness in sharing about family trauma, diagnoses, things that they're struggling with.'
Call it 'trauma-dumping,' 'emotional vampiring' or just plain oversharing — it's a rising trend in offices across America, thanks in part to Gen Z, remote work and a culture obsessed with 'bringing your whole self to work.'
But now that your deskmate is unloading details about their ex's alcoholism again, some are begging for a little mystery.
Lima's caught in the middle: 'At the end of the day, all of us would be doing the employee a disservice if we were trying to act as a mental health professional.'
Blame blurred boundaries.
'We now take our work home readily and easily, basically in our pockets with our phones,' Carrie Bulger, a psychologist at Quinnipiac University, said to the outlet.
'Why wouldn't they blur in the other direction as well? It feels kind of normal.'
But normal isn't always professional.
'Your reputation at work is built on how clearly and credibly you communicate, and oversharing can cloud both,' Carla Bevins of Carnegie Mellon warned Business Insider.
'There's a difference between being authentic versus being unfiltered.'
3 In today's workplace, some believe that every meeting doubles as a group therapy session — minus the privacy and the co-pay.
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The stakes are high.
'You don't want to invite bias or gossip, especially in very competitive and hierarchical environments,' Bevins added.
Still, some Gen Zers say they're just being real.
'Gen Z has become much more comfortable with talking openly about mental health issues and is really determined to take away some of the stigma,' career columnist Alison Green told the publication.
But as she also explained, 'workplaces and the culture more broadly [aren't] doing a good job of giving people guidance about how to preserve boundaries.'
Meanwhile, as The Post previously reported, Gen Z's workplace revolution isn't limited to emotional transparency — it also includes an unexpected ritual: the 3 p.m. snack run.
'The 3 p.m. sugar break is more than just getting over that afternoon slump. It is a moment of self-care and indulgence,' said Grace Garrick, a 30-year-old PR boss whose Gen Z staffers are so devoted to treat time that the corner store knows them by name.
'3 p.m. is like a victory lap after the daily grind,' she told news.com.au.
It's part of a bigger Gen Z movement to 'refine corporate culture' and prioritize comfort, even if it means constant micro-breaks, multiple desk drinks, and mid-day TikToks.
3 One minute you're talking spreadsheets, the next you're hearing about your coworker's spiritual awakening in Sedona.
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But not everyone's sweet on the habit.
'The breaks are constant,' warned workplace expert Roxanne Calder, who told the outlet that Gen Zers may be mistaking micro-breaks for 'micro-avoidances.'
So, before trauma-dumping on your boss or crying to IT about your roommate, take Sasha Leatherbarrow's advice.
'You don't need to overshare; you just need to read the room,' the global talent leader at investment firm Bansk Beauty told Business Insider in the aforementioned report.
'We want personality, not personal drama.'