Emotional regulation allows us to give our emotions a name. When we name our emotions we tame and claim them. Naming our emotions leads to a reduction in the intensity of that emotion.
There are four functions of emotions:
1. To motivate us.
2. To communicate with others.
3. To communicate with ourselves.
4. To initiate a physical response.
Understanding and naming emotions are difficult to manage when we lack an understanding of the impact they have on our functioning. No feeling lasts forever and we are not our emotions. Emotions are not catastrophic but they are a guide telling us whether to respond or not. Emotions that we regulate will assist us to a path of freedom.
To decrease suffering means we accept our circumstances which helps manage our feelings. Remember, “What we resist will persist”. Accept painful emotions as a part of our humanity.
Bessel Van Der Kolk in his book, “The Body Keeps The Score” reports, “Simply noticing our annoyance, nervousness, or anxiety immediately helps us shift our perspective and opens up new options other than habitual reactions”. He further shares, “When we pay focused attention to our bodily sensations, we can recognize the ebb and flow of our emotions, and that increases our control over them.
This gives us freedom from the past emotions which hold us back from experiencing the present moment.
Peace
Larry
email: ljw@superhumanbeing.net
website: https://superhumanbeing.net/
