EMOTIONS CAN RUIN SANITY| EMOTIONAL HEALTH|

Life today plays havoc with our emotions every day. The trigger could be anyone or anything, this stimulus-response should have been an old stone age thing!!! However, most often we are victims of our emotions, though we might be blaming others. I jump to ridiculous conclusions when I’m emotional, and I’m like anyone else in that sometimes they get the best of me. And it’s pretty embarrassing in those moments, especially if I’ve been stupid enough to make any kind of decision.

Today, every marketing -advertising company is leveraging this to sell their products and services to us. Most of our decision-making happens in the amygdala where our emotions can play havoc. While sensitivity and emotions are good to have, over dramatizing it for positive or negative can cost us our balance in harmony -health and happiness. Our entire life worthiness is determined by how we performed -offices we held -how we are perceived etc…To an extent that the scorecard for worthiness is given to external forces to assess. Sometimes evaluations are our perspectives and guesswork of what the final report looks like rather than an actual one…

Recently during a conversation with my friend, I found that we over-romanticize work-life and our expectations from the same. We don’t complain when every day in our life we need to deal with chores which don’t seem pleasant and fancy, like changing diapers-taking care of pet poops, putting the garbage out, dealing with some everyday critical comments from loved ones…yet when it comes to workspace even a conversation with an irate customer or someone’s upfront criticism can be demoralizing.

Sometimes having the awareness to recognize our judgment is clouded by emotion is next to impossible. Many of us don’t know how to read the signals. Hence why we get swept away by our caveman instincts.

Harvard Medical School On Stress As an Emotional Response: When someone experiences a stressful event, the amygdala, an area of the brain that contributes to emotional processing, sends a distress signal to the hypothalamus. This area of the brain functions like a command center, communicating with the rest of the body through the nervous system so that the person has the energy to fight or flee.

Every other human walking this earth falls into this trap. Sometimes being aware is all it takes to control. Though we call ourselves superior beings, we often make horrible decisions when solely guided by emotions. It’s like having horse blinders on. Our focus only becomes what is directly in front of us and is filtered through the emotion, blind to all the other inputs. Interestingly whether it’s investing in stockmarkets -business -real estate or buying anything we are mostly driven by our emotions rather than our intelligence.

So much so that when trading schools teach, the first thing that they underline is how to deal with your emotions when you are upstream or downstream with your investments.

9 Ways to take charge of your emotions -decision-making and wellbeing –

1. Disengage -Every time you get into an exaggerated emotion, disengage. The gap between stimulus and response is what drives your sanity. Think about the last time you made a poor decision. What emotions were flowing through you? In personal and professional life, this could be very effective to save relationships -business transactions and any situation which involves you to make decisions. I still remember one of my colleagues with an army background once told, ‘count 100 or even 1000’ to leverage logic. Take permission to leave and deal with it when you are calm and willing to look at all inputs.
2. Analyze Triggers – Sometimes we are so busy in life that we are not aware of our environment or even ourselves. We plunge into the same mistake repeatedly due to lack of observance and analysis, which can sure save you from future instances. Watch out when you are too consumed in an activity, that you miss out on obvious triggers, that have impacted you in the past. Understanding yourself, your preferences, and what disrupts your life, is critical to solving this emotional mystery!!
3. Avoid Hunger -Anger-Pain-Tiredness -The moment you notice hunger -anger -pain or tiredness it’s time for rest and rejuvenation before you can get back into action. Decision-making needs a crystal clear mind. Several years back, when my friend was jet-lagged he drove and was lucky to save himself from a major accident. Any activity that needs quick reflexes -decision-making needs you in a calm state of logic. While the gut decision-making and emotional response are taken into stride, it shouldn’t be overpowering the reasoning capabilities.
4. Express your feelings in appropriate ways-Let people close to you know when something is bothering you. Keeping feelings of sadness or anger inside adds to stress. It can cause problems in your relationships and at work.
5. Connect with others -Make a lunch date, join a group, and say hi to strangers. We need positive connections with other people. Social interactions can be a great way to rejuvenate. Focus on the good things in your life. Forgive yourself for making mistakes and forgive others. Spend time with healthy, positive people.
6. Find purpose and meaning -Identifying what gifts you have and channelizing them towards meaningful work can be a great way to engage your emotions positively. This could be your work, your family, volunteering, caregiving, or something else. Spend your time doing what feels meaningful to you.
7. Take care of your physical health– Exercise regularly, eat healthy meals and get enough sleep. Popping too many pills or even relying too much on entertaining drinks could also be adverse. Keep your physical health from affecting your emotional health.
8. Manage stress– Learn relaxation methods to cope with stress. These could include deep breathing, meditation, and exercise.
9. Strive for balance -Find a healthy balance between work and play, and between activity and rest. Make time for things you enjoy. Focus on positive things in your life.

Emotional health is an important part of overall health. Emotionally healthy people are in control of their thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. They’re able to cope with life’s challenges. They can keep problems in perspective and bounce back from setbacks. They feel good about themselves and others in their environment. Being emotionally healthy doesn’t mean you’re happy all the time. It means you’re aware of your emotions. You can deal with them, whether they’re positive or negative. Emotionally healthy people still feel stress, anger, and sadness. But they know how to manage their negative feelings. They can tell when a problem is more than they can handle on their own. They also know when to have interventions.

How well do you understand your emotions? What do you do when you are in a stressful situation? What are your triggers? What drives you in life? How do you want to contribute? What gives meaning to you in life? Do share with us your thoughts and how you engage with emotions.