Have you ever felt a certain way and not known why you feel that way? Have you ever not realised what emotion you are experiencing? What was the outcome?
In the past I have had difficulty identifying emotions at their earliest stage. To such an extent that when I felt pressured personally and professionally, I convinced myself I was managing well. Unfortunately, the outcome was that I succumbed to stress. The myriad of emotions I was suppressing bubbled up to the surface and I found myself no longer able to cope. Had I addressed my individual stressors earlier on, I could have avoided a myriad of additional problems.
I now take inventory of my emotional state frequently to avoid a recurrence.
There are numerous strategies we can use to do this. For the purposes of this article, I will focus on using Mindfulness to take inventory of our emotional state.
A daily meditative practice or quiet reflection time can prove invaluable in taking account of what is happening within us and around us. Take this brief time to ask yourself, what are you feeling? It can help to identify what physical emotional cues you are experiencing. Are you feeling tension in any area of your body? Are you aching anywhere? Are you fidgeting? What are you thinking about? Is there a recurrent thought that keeps provoking tension? Has a thought kept you up at night? Is there something you are avoiding thinking about? Often, when we find an issue troublesome, we will try to avoid it, rather than address it. It could be something we are doing or not doing. What is my sleep pattern like at the moment? Am I unable to sleep? Am I oversleeping? Are people asking me why I look tired all the time? Other people’s reactions to us can tell us a lot we don’t want to admit to ourselves. If everyone keeps asking if you are okay, maybe you need to ask yourself that same question.
Once we have identified how we are feeling, it is important to name that emotion. Naming an emotion provides us with the potential to take the power back from it. Not knowing why we feel a certain way can spark additional emotions that can cause us to spiral further. Knowing and naming the emotion gives you back a sense of control.
If anyone wants any support with identifying their emotional state, please don’t hesitate to contact me. You can message me directly here: Home | Chloe Mepham BSc Certified Life Coach, call 07719397270, or e-mail contact@chloemephambsc.com. All details can be found on my website chloemephambsc.com.
It is an emotive time out there, but you can keep yourself safe. Support may be difficult to ask for at times, but it can be so beneficial for immediate resolution, and building resilience to empower you to manage your own emotions.