Who among us hasn’t had a fit of rage or crying at a time when we couldn’t stop? To bear all this with health is emotional management.
We all need to regulate intense emotions at some point. The energy of anger with which we would have smashed the planet, the energy of joy that left us without tears or surprise that we could have jumped over the highest basket.
Emotional regulation in these situations becomes a difficult task, especially if we do not have some tools or know some strategies that can help us at the moment. With them, we can prevent, for example, not getting into a very tense situation or not ending acting against our interests in situations in which we feel very angry.
How to regulate intense emotions
Emotions have an indisputable adaptive value. For this reason, the strategy of trying to encapsulate it, and send it to the back of our mind so that it pollutes less, usually doesn’t work. First, because it is inevitable, and second, because it is necessary.
However, it is necessary to manage it properly. Doing so will not only allow you to better resolve conflicts, but also losses and even, why not, will prolong the emotional states of positive valence – which we can also get interesting results if we treat it well -.
1. Understand your emotions
Watch your feelings as they arise. Analyze when they appear, how severe they are, and what happens to make them go away. We often become disconnected from our emotional world, partly because of its spontaneous nature and partly because of the hectic lives we lead.
However, this introspection exercise is the best starting tool you can develop. There are many approaches to this, from being mindful to keeping an emotional diary. You choose what suits you best.
2. Remove yourself from situations that produce or fuel that emotional state
When we talk about the importance of getting to know each other, we are referring, indirectly, to issues like the ones we deal with today. If we just received good news, it might not be the best time to expose ourselves to that periodic family meeting that we usually end up feeling so bad. Perhaps this is not the time to start watching a documentary or reading a book aimed at social criticism. On the other hand, it might be a good time to look for those people who usually make us feel good or give those comedies we had on our blockbuster list a chance.
We are dynamic beings. In order not to lose control, a good strategy is to engage in activities in which the emotional state in which we find ourselves cannot find a way to nurture. We can achieve this effect by protecting the control of our attention system and actively directing our behavior at this time. As much as the experience may be, this is not the time to do what the body requires of us.
3. Listen to others
Viewers of your emotional behaviors have an interesting perspective to add to your understanding of your feelings. Ask them how you show yourself to others when you have intense feelings, how they feel, and what they might change about all of this. If you want to learn how to manage your emotions to improve your relationships, this exercise is essential.
4. Physical exercise
Feelings are often exacerbated by stress. In addition to relieving stress, exercise is useful for regulating hormonal processes related to emotion, such as serotonin levels.
Although at first you don’t feel the connection between feeling and feeling, over time you will end up forming the connection.
5. Train yourself in emotional management techniques
In addition to personal measures that you can take, there are techniques specifically created to regulate intense emotions. For example, there is a STOPP call, which follows these steps:
– Stop: Stop dying and stop everything being said and done.
– Take a breath: Take a breath, literally. Breathe until the emotional escalation stops.
Note: Note, make yourself aware of the situation and how it is developing.
Pause: A second pause to regain control of your emotions.
– Go ahead: Go ahead. You have already reduced emotional stress and can make decisions that are less influenced by the strength of how you feel.
This and many other techniques, such as the four-step technique, will help you identify, accept and manage intense emotions in a short period of time. Remember that they take time to master, so don’t despair if they don’t work at first.
6. Take care of your health
Like exercise, eating a healthy diet and getting a good night’s sleep may not seem to correlate with your feelings. However, you will know that no one is in a good mood when they are not sleeping well.
Also, believe it or not, the way you eat affects your emotions, so remember: mens sana in corpore Sano.
Source: The mind is wonderful
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