In school, we learned about the cardiovascular system, the digestive system, and most of the other systems in the body but did you also learn about the human emotional system? The emotional system is the limbic system or your emotional brain that branches from the nervous system. Our human emotions arise from this complex system of teamwork of brain regions and hormones that regulate emotions such as happiness, sadness, etc. Emotions are chemical messages sent from the feeling regions of the brain when the brain detects a threat or a reward externally or internally. Emotions are our physical and mental states brought on by our reactions to specific stimuli. Some of the factors that influence emotions are our biology, our environments, and our past experiences. Positive or negative emotions all serve a purpose, but if we manage intense emotions well, we are less impulsive and our emotions serve us better.
Emotions are what help us regulate our total body systems by sounding the appropriate alarms to alert us to help protect our survival. Emotions are genderless yet in some societies, some men are still socialized and not allowed to show certain emotions, and women are more socialized to be more emotional. In some cultures also, we were told emotions are not logical and we are not allowed to express certain types. These errors do not promote a healthy stress release. Is it any wonder why depression is on the rise? Could this also be the reasons why many people do not know how to regulate their emotions? If one does not know how to emotionally regulate, it will affect the entire nervous system. Emotions are going on in our bodies all the time carrying messages from the brain to every part of our body in sensations. When this system is working properly, emotions are like our thoughts. They come and go like a wave in the ocean, or like a bird flying past in the air. A healthy emotional system ought to be able to tolerate a range of emotions from the easy to the difficult ones in situation and in context.
There are basic and common emotions that seem to be expressed globally such as happiness, sadness, fear, disgust, anger, and surprise, but other types of emotions are not universal because some individuals and some cultures may express differently. When we suppress our emotions or can not express it in healthy ways, we are depressing them. This will cause potential problems in emotional dysregulation, mood swings and can eventually lead to anxiety, depression, and other stress-related disorders and mood disorders. Maybe you are surprised because I mentioned anxiety and depression when they are called mental health problems. Depression and anxiety are emotions before they affect our mental health to become mental health issue.
When we learn healthy emotion regulation, it reduces our emotional suffering, develop better coping skills and prevent most mental health issues.
What have you done previously to release stress and trapped emotions?
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