Controlling Your Emotions

Emotions are completely natural and are partially what makes life enjoyable, but have you ever felt that your emotions are controlling you instead of the other way around? Overwhelming emotions can have severe consequences, but the good news is you can learn to better control your emotions and use them in more productive ways. 

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While we cannot completely eliminate emotions (nor would we want to!) we can manage our reactions to situations and build emotional self-regulation. Emotional regulation is the ability to identify, understand, and effectively use your emotions to solve problems and reduce stress. 

Label the Emotion
Being able to identify your emotions is extremely important to controlling your reactions. Try to be very specific when you are feeling a particular emotion. For example, if you are feeling angry, go deeper and try to find the root cause of that emotion. When you are able to understand your emotions on a deeper level, you will be able to communicate your emotions more effectively. 

Reframe Your Thoughts
Your emotions affect the way you view certain situations. Most of the time, when a situation occurs, your thoughts start to race and immediately make you feel more anxious as you think of the worst-case scenario. Reframe your thoughts, and always look at the positive side of situations. This will reduce your emotions’ control over you. 

Self-Care
Tough emotions can arise when you are going through difficult times. It is essential to practice self-care to better your overall well-being. Find activities that you enjoy, such as drawing, exercising, or cooking, to allow you to relax when you are experiencing a lot of negative emotions. 

Emotions are a fantastic part of life; however, you do not want to feel as if they are controlling you. Developing better emotional regulation skills will help you identify, understand, and handle your emotions more effectively.

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