We get swept away in our strong emotions. They can literally kill us, or change how we do everything. Strong emotions are a game changer. They are gifts to ourselves.
Positive or negative emotions are passion. Passion is passion.
Strong emotions can be unsettling. We don’t always feel comfortable in our own skin when the emotions are intense. The current trend toward instant gratification can dull our senses and mask our emotions with a quick, “delete”.
If the strong emotions are positive, we can end up drunk on the endorphins and feel good chemicals in our brain. They become addictive. We crave the good feelings, but can’t always manage them. We can become irrational. Make quick decisions. Ride the wave of joy for as long as we can.
If the strong emotions are negative, we can end up off the rails with irrational beliefs or actions. We need to give ourselves check points and awaken our conscious mind to being conscious of our thoughts. Otherwise, we can say or do things that we either deeply regret or that put us in actual danger. When we become immune to the negative emotions, we’re in danger of not listening to them.
For a writer nomad in search of meaning … strong emotions are the guide posts.
Setting boundaries is the compass.
We remember the strong emotions a lot longer because they are unique. They can also change the very way that we exist in the world. When I experienced a series of several traumatic events in a rather short period of time, I was derailed from rational thought for a time. I fell apart. I cried every day. Usually more than once a day. Once I started to put the pieces back together, I had a set back. The second time? I used my compass to guide me back toward a balanced well-being.
The gift was there too.
I figured out quickly what I could live without. Self-preservation is a strong instinct for a human being who feels like they are dying from loss and sorrow. We begin to lose everything that doesn’t fit in the boundary of survival. Then, we begin to see who really cares for us, as the new emotions continue to control our actions.
It does get better.
Set boundaries that have small, measurable, self-loving check points so that you can listen to your own breath.
From there, it’s one step at a time, until it can be one day at a time. Soon enough, you’ll be able to enjoy the joy again. You’ll never be the same again. But you will have used those strong emotions as the gold in the cracks of your soul, to create an even more beautiful version of yourself.
The next time you feel the strong emotions, you’ll be in command. They will become familiar friends. Each new strong emotion will be a visitor, not a decision maker.
We are all human. We make mistakes. We learn from our lives. We savor, enjoy, or break in the same way. We also have the great capacity to mindfully connect to the art of being human. Love who you are. Emotions are our gift.
Peace and Love,
Karen
About the Author: Karen Henry, MA CRM owns Henry Healing dot com as a holistic well-being practitioner, independent researcher and writer/essayist. She lives in the northeast part of the USA. She was a charter member of IPPA, and now a member of INPM, IARP and NCCPT.