I have made a conscious effort to reduce swearing, which has brought my swearing down to near zero, both online and in real life conversation.

I have found that it streamlines the ability to make a point. A lot of swearing is simply thrown in out of habit, and if you remove it, all you do is make your point more clear without losing anything of substance.

I think for many people swearing is a “filler word” in the same way that “umm” can be. I have also worked hard to reduce my other filler word use. My goal with both of these is better articulation.

The next effect is that swearing is normally viewed as an extreme use of language for an extreme situation, and when you don’t constantly swear the times that you do actually conveys how notable the situation is.

I don’t really use those words unless I’m in a state my brain cannot better articulate my thoughts and feelings. They are a crude tool.

Reminds me of:

https://quoteinvestigator.com/2012/08/29/substitute-damn/

…there is one thing I wish you would do when you sit down to write news stories, and that is: Never use the word, “very.” It is the weakest word in the English language; doesn’t mean anything. If you feel the urge of “very” coming on, just write the word, “damn,” in the place of “very.” The editor will strike out the word, “damn,” and you will have a good sentence.

I suggest moderation and good taste in these matters

I feel like im the opposite from a lot of people in this thread. I very rarely get upset. Like, once a year maybe? Sure, some things annoy me, but they’re rarely worth getting upset about. I think most people see me as a “funny guy” thats easy to be around.

Now I swear a lot, like very alot. And its mostly for comedic purpose or putting that tiny bit of emphasis on something, usually opposite from what i actually mean. Saying something like “a fuckton” usually means i had 2 apples instead of 1, where if i actually had way too many apples i would be more descriptive about it and not swear. People tend to take things more seriously that way.

I think casually swearing can help with not getting upset to begin with while also being more expressive if used correctly. I feel like i can get emphasis on what i say and having some form of relief from just swearing casually, which helps negate the build up of annoyances and eventually actually getting upset.

I very rarely swear in an insulting manner, i find it way more insulting and effective to use words that are very “unharmful” for that purpose, such as calling someone a clown or gnome. In the right setting those are devasting. I dont think it translates very well to english, but just imitating a 10yo and saying “your mom” is also just insanely funny as an insult because of how inherently stupid it is.

I feel like this belongs here.

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I decided to try to stop swearing in college, to see if it would improve my attitude - and to see if anyone would notice.

Both turned out to be true. People found me pleasant to work with and hang around. I recommend it, personally!

Because swear words are, to me, an expression of anger or irritation. Swearing would therefore reinforce angry mindstates.

Yes, this was both very helpful for my mind, i’m happy and calm most of the time, and others appreciate it too and are happy to be around me.

It didn’t stop me from expressing anything. It just makes me pause to think of a better, kinder way to express myself, without making other people angry. It helps communicating with other people in a more friendly, helpful way. When i would be angry, it would be hard to listen to other people.

Honestly not sure why I just never really did in the first place

It was a cycle for me:

Not swearing led to swearing.

Swearing led to learning to swear in other languages.

Learning to swear in other languages served me well as I moved out of North America to teach.

Being out of North American led to me being more humble and less the brash North American. Also, I spent a lot of time with children.

Being less brash and speaking in other languages led me to think more about what I say before saying it.

Thinking about my speech led to downgrading swearing to make a point. I’ll swear, depending on the audience.

Specifically — like L-Boogie said — “I’ll add a MFer so you ign’ant ****s hear me.” (Fugees, The Score, “Zealots”) If I’m cursing, it’s prolly because there’s some ignorance in my area.

I admit, sometimes it’s mine.

Also, the irony is not lost on me that L fell off not too long after this rhyme. Celebrity culture can be a scene full of ignorance. I don’t blame her. I blame the industry.

I swear but try to limit it as much as I can. That way when I do it has more impact.

My parents both didn’t swear (at least not where I could hear them) so I simply never picked up the habit. I can swear if I make a conscious effort to do so, but generally only find reason to if I am quoting someone or something. And even that feels awkward to me.

As for expressing myself, I don’t believe I have much trouble in that regard. There are a ton of other words available and ways to arrange them. And if I truly need to express anguish, rage, etc. there is always yelling or screaming.

I enjoy the exercise of trying to think ahead of the words coming out of my mouth so I can speak more concisely and clearly. It’s the same reason I do calligraphy.

I save my profanity for times and things that are truly worth getting upset about. If you use it all the time, then it becomes meaningless. It just becomes background noise and you sound like a 10 year old all the time.

I choose to swear because sometimes words aren’t enough otherwise. When faced with the horrors of this world, sometimes a good “fucking” paired with whatever garbage is just appropriate. As in, “this fucking society.”