Your Voice: A refresher on handling emotions

As the world continues to change and evolve faster than ever before, so does the way we experience it. With every experience, our emotional state often shifts positively or negatively depending on what the experience means to us. This has left us more prone to encountering a wide spectrum of emotions on a daily basis. 

If we are not mindful of how we interact with these emotions, we could easily get carried away by impulses and act irrationally (especially in adverse situations). Therefore, it is critical that we regularly remind ourselves of how to manage these emotions.

De-identify with emotions

It is key to keep in mind that we are not our emotions. We are human beings who have the gift of experiencing emotions. This perspective empowers us to observe our feelings without getting involved with them. It helps in distancing ourselves from the heat of the situation so we can look at what is happening from an objective point of view. 

This will also influence the way we express ourselves. For example, instead of saying “I am stressed,” one should say “I am feeling stressed.”

Let go of labeling emotions as good or bad

When we experience a negative emotion, we will not only feel the discomfort associated with it, but we will also judge ourselves for failing to attain a positive emotion, which creates needless struggle. It is true that some feelings are more comfortable than others, but that doesn’t mean the uncomfortable feelings are terrible. It only means that we need to approach them differently. 

The right attitude is to accept that living life entails undergoing all kinds of emotions. Every emotion sends us a unique signal, and it is our responsibility to decode it and leverage it to our advantage. What deserves to be labeled as good or bad is how we respond to our emotions, not the emotions themselves.

Remember that we are always learning 

It is important that we be honest and realistic with ourselves. Perfection is not meant to be reached, but something to have as a goal. We are always learning, and learning to master our emotions is no exception. We must keep in mind that making mistakes in handling emotions should not discourage us. It should only propel us forward as it indicates that there is something new to learn about ourselves.

Your Voice reflects the thoughts and opinions of the writer, and not necessarily those of the publication.