"I feel so helpless." versus "A feeling of helplessness came over her." "The dog began experiencing learned helplessness when it's door was repeatedly locked. It stopped trying to open it, even when it wasn't." Hope this helps :).

Learned helplessness is a state that occurs after a person has experienced a stressful situation repeatedly. They come to believe that they are unable to control or change the situation, so they do not try — even when opportunities for change become available. Example: A child who performs poorly on math tests and assignments will quickly begin to feel that nothing he does will have any effect on his math performance. Sentence: Learned helplessness leads to increased feelings of stress and depression. Helplessness- means powerlessness, ineffectiveness Sentence: Losing a job generates feelings of helplessness , anger, frustration, and fear.