We live in a world where we get emotionally influenced. Many times, our responses to people and situations are influenced by our emotions.
When we are in traffic, we get frustrated and we might shout or yell at a passersby. When we miss our family and friends, we tend to become sad. When someone disappoints or hurts us, we may become enraged and disappointed. Thus, it is not just us, but also those around us who get impacted by our actions. Therefore when emotions get overwhelming, it is important that we manage it. The benefits of regulating emotions are many. Let’s take a look at them!
Did you know that a mood tends to last for a longer duration of time. An emotion, however, lasts only for seconds or minutes, and feelings arise over a longer duration through emotional experiences, and mainly, physical sensations.
The Importance of Emotional Regulation
Experiences that we might engage in can bring out emotions like happiness, excitement, anger, irritation, or worry which in turn can cause us to react physically and also influence our mental and emotional state.
Under such circumstances, there are a few physical signs such as the production of more stress hormones, which raises body temperature, blood pressure, heart rate, and breathing rate, or increased sweating, sometimes even goosebumps! Individuals may become irritable, snap at others, have unpleasant feelings, or go through drastic mood swings.
Negative emotions aren't something you should try to avoid or be frightened of. What we do not realise is that the very same negative emotions are bringing something to our notice - they are showing us that whatever it is we are going through matters to us. For eg., we check on both sides to make sure there are no signs of any vehicles while crossing the road. This is our mind trying to keep us safe.
Although negative emotions have a positive effect on individuals and keeps them alert, if out of proportion, they can be harmful and individuals may begin to hurt themselves or others around them. To balance emotions when they can tend to become intense, we need to regulate it and bring it back to equilibrium.
This taught ability to apply conscious thinking to situations that arouse intense emotions is known as emotional self-regulation.
When individuals make conscious efforts to regulate their emotions, they tend to:
Become aware of the rise in emotional reaction - Learning to identify what one is going through helps categorise the emotion as well as find the root cause.
Think about the effects of any action - Being able to judge the consequences of a particular action helps one be more responsible with respect to their actions.
Make conscious decisions -When one has worked to strengthen the ability to control their emotions, they may respond consciously in situations rather than just reacting. The actions come from a calmer, more composed place rather than being driven by impulsivity. This can help a person feel more in control of the situation.
Engage in effective and constructive communication - One will be able to listen properly and convey the messages they wish to convey when they have emotional control. Instead of operating from a position of anguish, they may manage their emotions and act rationally.
Maintain healthy relationships - One may find it easier to be themselves and be open and honest about sentiments since they feel free to express themselves when they can control their emotions.
Build self-esteem - An individual can learn to extend the same grace and kindness to themselves for their own shortcomings as they would do to others for theirs. One will also begin to acknowledge one’s own worth and strengths.
Have lesser mood swings - Learning to regulate emotions helps one have a more steady graph when it comes to emotions. There are no extreme reactions or mood swings. Even if a person does feel low, by regulating their emotions, they can bounce back to equilibrium faster.
Make better and healthier choices - An individual will have the option of selecting what is and is not healthy for themselves. When they are flooded by an emotion, they will know what actions to take and which to avoid in order to navigate through their emotion.
How can one work on regulating their emotions better?
Practising skills to regulate our emotions can be a tedious task and the duration varies from person to person. Some may acquire it faster, whereas some may take longer to acquire those skills.
Some of the strategies to regulate emotions are mentioned below:
Look out for positive emotions - Humans are wired to give negative emotions greater weight than pleasant ones. Slowly start shifting your focus towards positive emotions and make an effort to be optimistic.
Pause to figure out how to react to situations - Taking time to process the situation helps to react accordingly.
Be Aware of how you are feeling - Being conscious of how you are feeling from within will help to keep a tab on emotions.
Avoid the habit of assuming things - Try to be more realistic and make sure to have covered all prospects before arriving at a conclusion about someone or something. Eg., if your friend is unable to catch up for an outing, instead of having an anger outburst and assuming they do not find you important, try to understand why they will not be able to make it.
Detach yourself from the situation - One can avoid becoming emotionally trapped by separating themselves from the emotion they are experiencing and approaching it objectively.
Practice Temporal distancing - By viewing an issue from a different time frame, one may change their point of view by recognising that unpleasant feelings are transient. This strategy makes one feel less fearful of them.
Express Gratitude - Showing gratitude not only benefits an individual but also those around them. By strengthening relationships, gratitude can enhance good feelings in the short and long term.
Find alternative ways to deal with a certain situation - We frequently act in ways that are consistent with what we are experiencing. By taking an action that is contrary to the way we are feeling, we can temporarily distract ourselves from the intense emotion and once we feel calm and more centered, we will be better placed to process the emotion and the event better.
Noticing what we feel - Identifying what we are feeling and where we are feeling it - is it external or internal? Eg: butterflies in the stomach, sweating.
Naming what we feel - Giving a tag to what you are feeling can help control it better. Eg: "I am feeling disappointed or angry because I did not score well in my exam."
Accepting how we feel - Once one learns to accept what and how one is feeling, one will begin to feel better about oneself too instead of beating oneself up or feeling guilty about how one is feeling.
Being mindful - Being more conscious of what we are going through and making an effort to stay in the present and go with the flow.
Taking time to process things - Giving time to process the situation helps one to react better to a particular situation, rather than having an immediate outburst.
I would love to know more about your thoughts and suggestions on this blog! Please leave your feedback here.
Comments