EMOTIONS VS LOGIC
“Doctor, I need to find a way to manage my emotions and keep them under control”.
Between emotions and logic, emotions always win! when we try to keep our emotions under control, by suppressing them or ignoring them, they only grow bigger in intensity or they manifest into the body through psychosomatic illnesses.
Instead of trying to keep emotions under control, we can regulate them. The first strategy, approaches emotions as if they are an enemy to combat, the second approach instead, sees emotions as a messenger carrying an information to listen to.
The first thing is to befriend our body. Emotions are the language through which the body communicate with us. Ask yourself “what kind of bodily feelings am I experiencing?”
Then, start noticing your emotions and ask yourself “what kind of emotion/s am I experiencing ?”. Emotions understand only the language of emotions thus self-love and self-soothing. Dropping all judgments about your emotions or yourself (I should’t be feeling like this), but instead:
Image to give yourself a hug, hug your body with love, journaling /drawing Have a walk. Self-love and kind thoughts, shake your body.
PANICK ATTACKS AND ANXIETY ATTACKS
The main difference between Panick Attacks and Acute Anxiety:
A Panick Attack is characterised by the fact that the person interprets physical symptoms (the heart racing), in a catastrophic manner such as: “I am going to have a heart attack” or “I am going to die” or “I am going to faint/to lose control”.
A Panick Attack occur suddenly, it lasts only few minutes and it is very intense.
Things to do to ground yourself:
Diaphramatic breathing
Progressive muscle relaxation
EFT Tapping
Touching some fabric or an object
Journaling, Drawing, Sewing
Socrating Questioning “what’s the evidence
That my heart racing means that I’m having a heart attack?”; “out of all the times that my heart raced and I had a panic attack, how many times did I have a heart attack?”.
WHAT IS THE EGO?
What is the Ego?
The Ego (I am) is the belief system that represents who I think I am and Identifies with it. It is formed by all positive and negative beliefs about oneself, the world and the future, interiorised and created through life experiences and social relations.
The Ego is also the social role that we take on when acting in society, for instance at work, in the family or with friends. The Ego are the judging thoughts and the expectations that creates the experience (feelings and emotions) about ourselves and our surroundings.
For instance, the Ego can manifest itself in cognitive distortions such as Labeling “I am a failure for making a mistake”. Or through Imperatives “I should always do my absolute best”.
How to become aware of your Ego? Ask yourself: “What was just going on through my mind?”, “What was I thinking/ imaging?”.
By doing this, noticing how these thoughts are affecting the perception of your experience within yourself and in relation with your surroundings.
WHAT IS BURNOUT?
Burnout is a state of emotional, mental, and physical exhaustion caused by prolonged stress, particularly in work or caregiving roles. It often arises when we feel overwhelmed by constant demands, leading to feelings of detachment or helplessness.
Burnout manifests in cognitive distortions like "I’ll never be good enough" or overcommitment like "I should always work harder." It impacts our emotional responses and perceptions of ourselves and our environment.
To recognize burnout, ask yourself: “What am I feeling right now?” and notice how stress affects your well-being and relationships.
