Our life is full of emotions, these are a natural part of our existence. Some of them are easier for us to manage than others. Generally, when it is difficult for us, or we cannot control emotions, We usually say that they are negative, but they are only emotions that are part of our human experience that we can learn to control properly.
People who lose control of their emotions are often justified with statements such as “that person is like that,” “that’s his temperament,” among others. But it turns out that this is false. Surely, for some reason you tend to react in a certain way when faced with a situation that makes you feel at risk, but this does not mean that you cannot learn to control emotions and take control of your life.
Can you imagine what interpersonal relationships would be like if none of us could properly manage our emotions? Definitely, it would be very difficult to coexist in that way. The people you know around you who manage to remain calm and make intelligent decisions regardless of the circumstances were not born with extraordinary gifts, they were simply have developed emotional intelligence. And if they can, so can you.
How to control emotions? 5 tips that will help you
Allowing emotions to take control of our lives makes us very vulnerable. Every day we can work to develop skills that allow us to control emotions in an appropriate way. Find below some guidelines that can be very useful.
Identify your emotions
When you don’t know what is happening, what its cause is and what its consequences are, it is very difficult for you to take action to solve a certain situation. And this applies to all areas of life. When we talk about controlling your emotions, the first step is to recognize them:
- Pay attention to how you feel and why you feel that way.
- Connect with your emotions in a conscious way and without judging them.
- Better understand your emotional reactions and learn how to manage them.
Breathe
Surely most of our lives we don’t realize that we are breathing, but, as you know, that is what keeps us alive. When we face very intense emotions, being aware of our breathing can help us release the emotional burden we carry. Take a few minutes to focus on your breathing:
- Inhale deeply through your nose.
- Exhale slowly through your mouth.
- Repeat this process several times until you feel your mind and body calm down.
Analyze your thoughts
Often when a thought enters our mind, we assume that it is true and that this is how things will be. Sometimes our thoughts can work against us and make us think that the most catastrophic scenarios are a reality. In these cases, carefully analyzing what we are thinking will help us be more precise and realistic. Don’t get carried away by exaggerated and distorted thoughts.
Visualization can help you
Through visualization, you can imagine a positive situation or a calm emotional response. When you experience a negative emotion, try closing your eyes and imagining a calm, relaxing place or situation where you feel happy and safe. Visualize how you feel in that place or situation, and try to focus on the physical sensations associated with that emotion. In this way, it is very likely that you will be able to reduce the intensity of your negative emotions.
Self-regulate
Self-regulation is the ability to control your impulses and emotions. When you learn to identify your emotional triggers, you can take steps to avoid them or manage them better. Likewise, including regular physical activity, a healthy diet and good rest habits in your daily routine can positively contribute to controlling emotions.
There are many actions you can take to reinforce skills such as emotional intelligence and manage emotions properly. Start little by little and you can see how your life changes.
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Heal to better control emotions
Many times when we have gone through a traumatic experience such as sexual abuse, we may have difficulties controlling our emotions and reacting appropriately to certain situations. This indicates that there are wounds that we must heal and skills that we need to reinforce to improve the management of our emotions and have a fuller life.
In it # Movement We want to share with you tools that can help you have greater control of your emotions and create healthier bonds with the people around you. Knowing ourselves better and managing our emotions better will help us be more emotionally responsible and distance ourselves from abusive relationships and behaviors that can harm us.
If you want to know tools that help you effectively control emotions we invite you to. Also, we invite you to learn about the work we do to support survivors of sexual abuse in their healing process. You also can.