How to Mindfully Deal with Difficult Emotions
Remember it’s ok to not be ok. We’re human and we all experience a variety of emotions, good and bad. Unsurprisingly, we often try to ignore, dismiss, or bottle up our painful emotions. We may try watching tv, scrolling through social media, picking up a drink or finding some other distraction to escape our feelings. It’s natural to try to feel better as quickly as possible but when we fail to “sit” with the emotion, we can prolong our discomfort. Always distracting ourselves doesn’t make the feeling go away, it just covers it up and it may pop back up when we least expect it.
If we're able to learn to sit with difficult emotions we can learn to tolerate and process them in a healthy way. By doing so we can gain new insights and actions that can help us in all areas of our lives.
How can you “sit” with your emotions? Here are some practical tips:
Turn toward your emotions with acceptance – Become aware of the emotion and identify where you sense it in your body
Identify and Label the emotion
Accept your emotions – Don’t deny or judge them
Realize the impermanence of your emotions – Remember, everything is temporary.
Inquire and Investigate – Ask yourself “What triggered me, Why do I feel this way?”
Let go of the need to control your emotions – Be open to the outcome of your emotions and what unfolds
