Practicing mindfulness of emotions: What does it look like? Therapists answer

Sitting with difficult emotions requires a lot of patience, understanding, and calmness. Often, we run away from the feelings that make us feel overwhelmed, angry, and frustrated. Feelings of loss, grief, rage, fear, and loneliness can make us feel helpless at times. However, if we learn to be mindful and treat emotions gently when we sit with them and allow ourselves to feel them fully, we can help manage them better. Therapist Gianna Lalotta wrote, “Making space for difficult emotions and dealing with them requires tenderness and curiosity.”

Also Read: Ways to Express Your Feelings Better

Approaching emotions with curiosity:

Instead of being afraid of emotions, we should know how emotions arise and what the underlying feeling is. Being curious about our emotions can help us know their deeper roots.

Also read: Are you struggling with difficult emotions? Know how to prove yourself right

Not evaluating our feelings:

At no time should we evaluate our feelings, we should consciously create a safe space within ourselves where we can allow ourselves to feel and think whatever we want. This will help us become more self-aware.

Paying attention to feelings in the body:

Emotions can manifest as physical sensations in the body. Whether it’s a rapid heartbeat or nausea, or nervousness, we must feel the physical sensations, and also how a particular emotion makes us feel.

Also Read: How to control your emotions?

Do not resist emotions:

The primary thing we need to remember when being mindful of our emotions is that we cannot resist them — when we resist difficult emotions, they tend to surface later as intense reactions. Instead, we must welcome our feelings and learn to sit with them.

Considering emotions as temporary visitors:

We must internalize the idea that any emotion is permanent – this will help us deal with all kinds of difficult emotions with a positive attitude. When we learn to welcome emotions, become aware of the underlying causes and learn to manage them, we can have a better perspective on everything.

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always seek the advice of your doctor for any questions about any medical condition.