As human beings, we all have feelings and emotions. We all have the capacity to feel something, whether it’s joy, anger, indifference, hurt, or any other thing. We all have that ability; it’s part of what makes us human! But differentiating between how we are and how we feel tends to be difficult because sometimes, we get so enveloped in our feelings that we take them to indicate how we are. This ends up being dangerous for our minds and bodies. But it shouldn’t always be this way. In this blog post, we’ll talk about viewing your emotions differently and handling them in ways that will only be beneficial to your well-being.
Emotions usually refer to the meanings we draw or deduce from specific situations. They have been described as “neurological reactions to an emotional stimulus.”
Let’s use a scenario to explain it. Imagine one of those times when you’re rushing out, maybe to work or school. You’re in such a hurry trying to get out of the house, and somehow, you hit your pinky toe. At that moment, you forget all about your rush and pause, even if it’s just for a second, to feel the pain – to let out a cry, whimper, or even a curse (lol). This experience just took you through the key elements of emotions: the subjective experience, the physiological response, and the behavioural response.
The subjective experience: The subjective experience is the specific thing that happens to you and leads to the other two elements. It is the foundation of whatever emotion of yours is being examined. In our scenario above, the subjective experience is stubbing your pinky toe.
The physiological response: This is the response to the subjective experience that happens within you. Think about your ears ringing or your stomach lurching when something happens; that’s a physiological response to what’s happened to you. Most of our physiological responses are regulated by something called the sympathetic nervous system, which is a network of nerves that help our bodies to activate the fight-or-flight response.
The Behavioural response: This is the most pronounced response because it is the physical aspect of the experience. The behavioural response is the actual expression of emotion through physical acts like laughing, crying and other actions.
Beyond the science, one thing that is very easy for us to forget is the fact that our emotions at specific times are temporary. It’s very easy for us to get wrapped up in how we feel and what we’re going through especially when the feelings and emotions are negative, forgetting that doing so could be harmful to our bodies. When we hold on to negative emotions, we are trapping that energy in our bodies and slowly killing our bodies with all that negativity.
Letting how you feel in a certain moment determine how or what you are is not beneficial to you, especially when what’s in question is negativity. We should be able to differentiate what we are from how we feel, and act in that consciousness every time. Being angry doesn’t mean you’re an angry person. It just means you feel angry, and you need to work on letting go of that feeling. In the game where it’s I am vs I feel, I am should always win!
So the next time you feel negative emotions whether anger, sadness, pain or any other one, remember that holding on to them will only do you more harm than good in the long run. So take a deep breath, think about what’s happening and consciously bring yourself out of that space into a happier, more beneficial state of mind. Your body, and indeed your life, will thank you!
What are emotions?
Emotions usually refer to the meanings we draw or deduce from specific situations. They have been described as “neurological reactions to an emotional stimulus.”
Let’s use a scenario to explain it. Imagine one of those times when you’re rushing out, maybe to work or school. You’re in such a hurry trying to get out of the house, and somehow, you hit your pinky toe. At that moment, you forget all about your rush and pause, even if it’s just for a second, to feel the pain – to let out a cry, whimper, or even a curse (lol). This experience just took you through the key elements of emotions: the subjective experience, the physiological response, and the behavioural response.
The subjective experience: The subjective experience is the specific thing that happens to you and leads to the other two elements. It is the foundation of whatever emotion of yours is being examined. In our scenario above, the subjective experience is stubbing your pinky toe.
The physiological response: This is the response to the subjective experience that happens within you. Think about your ears ringing or your stomach lurching when something happens; that’s a physiological response to what’s happened to you. Most of our physiological responses are regulated by something called the sympathetic nervous system, which is a network of nerves that help our bodies to activate the fight-or-flight response.
The Behavioural response: This is the most pronounced response because it is the physical aspect of the experience. The behavioural response is the actual expression of emotion through physical acts like laughing, crying and other actions.
So how do we deal with emotions?
Beyond the science, one thing that is very easy for us to forget is the fact that our emotions at specific times are temporary. It’s very easy for us to get wrapped up in how we feel and what we’re going through especially when the feelings and emotions are negative, forgetting that doing so could be harmful to our bodies. When we hold on to negative emotions, we are trapping that energy in our bodies and slowly killing our bodies with all that negativity.
Letting how you feel in a certain moment determine how or what you are is not beneficial to you, especially when what’s in question is negativity. We should be able to differentiate what we are from how we feel, and act in that consciousness every time. Being angry doesn’t mean you’re an angry person. It just means you feel angry, and you need to work on letting go of that feeling. In the game where it’s I am vs I feel, I am should always win!
So the next time you feel negative emotions whether anger, sadness, pain or any other one, remember that holding on to them will only do you more harm than good in the long run. So take a deep breath, think about what’s happening and consciously bring yourself out of that space into a happier, more beneficial state of mind. Your body, and indeed your life, will thank you!