Emotions Are Our Guides

Emotions can be our best teachers.  They aren’t always convenient or preferred, but they serve a purpose if we allow them instead of resisting, judging, or silencing them.

For example, the sadness of grief can be a reminder of our humanness and a guide to our most tender moments and spaces.  It can be the crack that lets the light in as Leonard Cohen speaks of in his lyrics to the song Anthem. 

If we acknowledge each of our emotions, even those that we deem ‘negative’, they may reveal something important.  Listen instead of shutting them out.  You don’t have to wallow in them, but I encourage you to sit with them for a while and get interested in what they’re here to show you.  Then, they can be released... and you can be released from their grip.

Here are a few tips:

1.        Use an emotional wheel to increase your emotion vocabulary.  It’s quite helpful when you ‘can’t put your finger on’ the exact emotion you are experiencing. Click here for the one I use with my clients.

2.        Acknowledge and name the emotions you’re experiencing.

3.        Ask yourself why you’re feeling this way, without judgment.

4.        Explore the beliefs behind the emotion.  Free thought journaling can be helpful here.

5.        If you uncover a limiting belief, fear or regret, determine if there’s any action you need to take to move forward towards peace.  Actions might include (but are not limited to) a conversation, acceptance, further reflection or self-development work.