I want to share with you a reality that is sometimes hard to swallow, but is so very important in giving yourself grace through your healing journey.
I would be lying if I told you that old stories from childhood DON’T have the ability to keep you feeling stuck in adulthood… because they really do.
When something triggers you, your thoughts and emotions often stem from an old narrative you picked up from childhood that is still looping in your subconscious. HOWEVER these difficult childhood story patterns and emotions can be an invitation to observe, heal, and grow.
Sometimes it is about learning to FEEL rather than FIX.
Do you often find yourself caught up in wanting to fix what is going on rather than letting yourself feel and process through it? You are not alone. Know that there is no shortcut to healing- it is often through allowing ourselves to feel all of the feelings instead of suppressing them which is where true healing can start to take place.
I know you may be thinking, okay this is interesting, but where is the science? I got you.. Just keep reading. Here are some emotional regulation basics.
Three ways to regulate emotions-
- Reappraisal: how you think and reframe emotional situations.
- Suppression: Inhibiting behavioral expressions.
- Emotional Acceptance: Not altering your emotions.
Reappraisal is a positive type of emotional regulation where you reframe emotional situations in a new light. Suppression is viewed as a negative emotional regulation response where there is an inhibition of behavioral expressions. There is a contrast between what a person feels and what others see. Then, emotional acceptance is when someone acknowledges they’re emotional but deciding not to do anything about it.Understanding this can help you start to implement more awareness of your own emotional responses.
Now that you know the basics, it’s important to note that emotional support is important and can look different in various moments of your life.
Emotional support can look like:
- Talking to a friend
- Giving yourself space to process
- Working with a practitioner
- Taking actions towards supporting your body and nervous system
There is a common misconception that emotional support only looks like X but this is not entirely true.. emotional support can take many forms and have many different benefits. This is not a one size fits all approach.
Next Steps
As you continue to navigate through learning about emotional regulation and supporting yourself along your journey, I would love to connect with you through a clarity call. I hope that this information has been insightful and informative for your process. I look forward to connecting with you further! As always, thank you for saving space for me and feel free to send this to a friend who could also benefit from this information.
