Around this time last year, I posted a quote on my Instagram page @selfforhelp about the need to be able to sit with your emotions… It was really popular with 144 likes, so I thought I would expand on it here... Oh, and by the way, if you missed it, click here.
Now, I am not oblivious to the complexities of what I was asking people to do. But I am sure of the benefits if you can stick to it!
Learning to sit with your emotions is one of the greatest lessons in life. Unfortunately, like most of life's lessons, it's not an easy one - but it is worth it.
Not sure if you need to learn to sit with your emotions? Let’s do a quick test:
Have you ever asked yourself WHY CAN'T I JUST BE OVER IT NOW?!
Ever woke up, feeling the same emotional pain from the night before?
Or felt a sudden surge of emotion and panicked?
Then learning to sit with your emotions is for you. Let’s look into this a little bit more…
Alright Aisha, but why would I want to sit with my emotions?
Let me just start off by saying, when I talk about emotions, I am referring to the ones that you find it hard to be with. For some, these will be “negative” emotions like anger, fear, or sadness. But for some, these will be “positive” emotions, such as happiness, joy, and excitement.
Didn’t see that last bit coming, did you?
Well, I tell you no lies. “Positive” emotions can be just as hard to manage as negative ones. But that is for another blog…
Now, where were we… Ahh! Why would you want to sit with the thing that causes you so much discomfort?
Well, the short answer is, they cause you so much discomfort, because you have not yet learnt how to sit with them.
Learning to sit with your emotions allows you to manage in times of distress, to "keep calm and carry on" (as it were). It also allows you to sit with others through their emotional distress.
Think about it this way. Everything that is now in your comfort zone was at one point in time - outside of your comfort zone!
Don’t believe me? Think about it. Driving, riding a bike, even walking and talking… everything we know how to do now, we learnt at some point in time. We may not remember how uncomfortable that learning process was now, because we know it off by heart. But everything new in life causes some form of discomfort. And becomes more comfortable as we become more familiar with it.
So, it makes sense that if you can learn to sit with your emotions, you can learn to be more comfortable with them and gain emotional mastery. What’s more, you can start to figure out what tools you need to help support you emotionally too.
Ahh so now you understand the power of sitting with your emotions ey? Well, now you are ready, I can start to help you with that journey. If you haven’t already, click here to subscribe to my e-mail list and get access to my FREE mental health and wellbeing tools every month.
Until next time!
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