Hello,
And thanks for tuning in to Tranquil Spirits podcast.
My name is Jacqueline and I'm very happy to have you here with me.
Have you ever wondered why you can feel good one minute and then someone says something to you or you see something you don't agree with and your emotion completely changes?
This year,
2020,
Has certainly been a year of emotions and the slightest little thing can send us on the up and down emotional rollercoaster ride.
I for one have experienced all the emotions possible at one time or another during this year.
A mixed bag and every day can be different and sometimes we don't even know why,
Especially when we burst into tears for no apparent reason or even start laughing at something no one else seems to find funny.
So why do we have emotions,
Especially the painful ones?
Despite the pain some emotions can cause,
They are necessary because without them we wouldn't survive.
We all have emotions and they let us know things such as when to run from danger or when to comfort someone who is crying.
Anger takes us from a calm state to one where we're ready to fight.
Fear tells us to run from dangerous situations.
We don't waste time thinking about what to do,
We just act as fast as we can.
The feeling of sadness can make us decide to change the direction of our life or leave a bad relationship.
Frustration over an unsatisfying job motivates us to look for new work or change careers.
But not all negative emotions are bad for us,
They also help with our wellbeing.
Emotions can also motivate us to continue what we're doing,
Especially if what we are experiencing is pleasurable and gives us a feeling of joy.
Love motivates us to care for others and do things we may not otherwise do.
The feeling of happiness encourages us to continue doing what we are doing.
When we pay attention to our emotions they can help us but without self-awareness our emotions can quickly become overwhelming or confusing,
Especially the negative emotions.
When we identify the emotion we are feeling,
Anxiety,
Sadness,
Anger,
We can begin to take away the power from the emotion and then work through what was causing it.
So how can we manage our negative emotions better?
Here are my five tips.
Number one,
Focus on your breath.
The simple technique of count into five,
Hold for five,
Then exhale for five and repeat is a great one but sometimes this doesn't always work.
A good one that I found is by using a deflated balloon.
Blow up the balloon and watch it deflate and by doing this a number of times your mind becomes so focused on the balloon that the negative emotions have passed and you feel ready to carry on.
Number two,
Focus on your five senses.
Spend one minute focusing on each of your five senses.
So hearing,
What sounds do you hear?
Can you hear cars,
Birds?
What about your breathing?
Do you notice anything that you haven't heard before?
The sense of smell,
What do you smell?
Is there food near you?
Are there flowers?
Try closing your eyes for this one because with your sight it kind of takes away that sense of smell.
So just smell what's going on around you.
Is there a smell that you hadn't noticed before?
Your sense of sight,
What do you see?
Take notice of details such as colours,
Patterns,
Shapes.
Look for as many say blue things,
Things that maybe you hadn't even noticed around you.
Sense of touch,
What can you feel?
So without moving just where you are,
Feel your skin,
Feel the sensation of touching your skin,
Feel the chair that you're sitting on,
Feel the fabric of your clothes.
Just by using your five senses it takes the focus away from the negative emotion that you may be feeling.
Number three is muscle relaxation.
Tense each muscle group for five seconds and then slowly relax.
Just work your way up the body.
Again this just takes the focus away from that feeling of anger,
That feeling of some emotion that has erupted within you and you don't even really know why.
Just start tensing your body and then relax.
For your face muscles a good one is to imagine that you're eating a lemon and then tense your face up as hard as you can and then imagine you're eating something sweet and allow your face to relax.
Number four is meditating.
Meditating is such a good thing to be able to do for anything in your life,
Any situation at all.
Meditation improves positive emotions,
Satisfaction,
Health and happiness and it helps decrease the anxiety,
Stress,
Depression.
It calms the mind.
An easy one to do is focus on a single thing such as a candle flame and when you feel your mind wander as it will,
Let those thoughts go.
Bring your concentration back to your focus point,
To that candle flame.
A couple of minutes of doing this will really help greatly.
And number five is talking.
Being alone with sad or painful emotions can create more upsetting thoughts to come to mind.
Reach out to a good friend or family member.
Sharing time with someone positive may be just what you need but we don't always have someone around that we can talk to or you may feel that nobody wants to hear you so what can you do then?
Well try talking to yourself.
Ask yourself questions such as why do I feel like this?
Do I like feeling like this?
What can I do to make myself feel better?
By asking yourself questions you take the focus away from the negative emotion and you get a better understanding of what is going on inside of you.
This is a great technique to use if you're struggling with making a decision about something in your life.
Give it a try the next time you feel confused about something.
It really does work.
So these are my five tips for managing your negative emotions.
Number one focus on your breath.
Number two focus on your five senses.
Number three muscle relaxation.
Number four meditation and number five talking.
Throughout my life I have learned that my emotions are not fixed and I do have a choice in the way I feel.
I have learned that by learning new techniques I feel more able to deal with challenging thoughts and feelings life's ups and downs creates within me.
I have learned that by tuning into my senses more often I get to appreciate so much more in life.
I have learned that the more I practice meditation the more relaxed and calm I feel about things which used to wind me up.
And I have learned that by talking to myself I understand my wants needs and desires so much more.
Thank you so much for listening.
I hope you have found this helpful in some way.
Please feel free to message me.
I truly enjoy hearing your thoughts and I thank you for taking time to do that.
Have a beautiful day.
You deserve it.
And remember always follow that dream.
Thanks again for listening and I'll speak to you again soon on my next podcast.
