Have You Done Your Emotional Research?

I posted a quote on Facebook last week and it seemed to resonate.

It read…

Somewhere in my journey through being an emotional worker I learned that feelings hold an incredible amount of wisdom.Your emotional life may at times be something you want to move away from, but it can actually be your best teacher.This is particularly true for the feelings that surface when you’re struggling through a difficult time of life.

Your depression tells you that you’re hurting.

Your anger tells you that you need more power.

Your disappointment tells you to check in on your boundaries.

Your guilt tells you that you need to make a repair.

Tuning in to your emotional life takes patience and practice, and seeing your feelings as an opportunity for learning requires a self-compassionate approach.

When you turn in judgment on yourself for feeling negatively about something or someone you’re internal critic is silencing your emotional truthsayer.

I recently met with a very wise woman who suggested I approach my life as a researcher.By this she meant taking each moment in as information with the intention of gaining an understanding of my emotional life (and here’s the tricky part) without interpreting or analyzing in the moment.When your thinking about something it’s very hard to fully feel it.

The habit of self-condemnation or even self-blame in response to a negative feeling robs you of the chance to really understand and grow from the experience.

When you say, “I hate that I feel this way” or “I just wish I would get over it” you’re creating more suffering.

When you say, “It’s interesting that I had that response” or “I’m curious that I reacted that way” you are showing yourself compassion and understanding.

Becoming curious, and approaching your day to day feelings as a researcher creates a space for you to gain truth through observation instead of presumption.

You’ll also enhance your self-trust and learn to honor and respect what you feel.

This way of relating to your emotions builds your practice of responding to triggers as opposed to reacting to them.

Emotions live in your physiology although it might sometimes seem they originate in your mind. This is why tuning into your body is an important first step in shifting from judge and jury to researcher.

Practice this for a day and see what you can learn.