Navigating Negative Emotions

What is it?

It’s a sort of feeling or thought that something is not quite right, it feels off and just doesn’t feel good mentally or physically. It makes you feel unsettled and wanting to make it go away one way or the other. It’s unpleasant but it’s usually not intense.

What is it telling you?

It’s telling you something about how you are reacting to your present situation or thought process. It’s asking you to pay attention to what you are really feeling uncomfortable about. Is it boredom, embarrassment, or impatience?

How to manage it?

• Recognize it, acknowledge it, and name it.
• Rather than to avoid it or ignore it, open up to the possibility of learning something new about yourself from this experience.
• Embrace the opportunity to get out of your comfort zone – If you are able to be comfortable with feeling discomfort, then you can achieve almost anything.
• Learn to let go of your expectations.
• Identify where the discomfort is coming from and attempt to dissolve it by changing the situation or behavior especially if it is discomfort stemming from a negative situation

What is it?

It’s one of the fundamental human emotions we all experience when faced with the threat of harm either physical or emotional, real or imagined. Traditionally fear is regarded as a “negative emotion” but it actually serves an important role in keeping you safe.

What is it telling you?

Fear is alerting you of a potential and imminent threat. It’s telling you to focus and be ready to act in the face of danger, if that danger is real. If the threat is imagined, it’s telling you to reevaluate your perception and interpretation of a situation. Your learning to cope with the fear of an imagined threat is an invitation to grow as a human being.

How to manage it?

Pay close attention and evaluate if your fear is real or imagined by looking at the evidence. If it’s real, act on it now.

If it’s imagined:

• Before anything else – BREATHE! Breathe slowly and deeply several times to calm down both your body and your mind.
• Avoid avoidance. If you face your fear, it will lose its power over you and it will fade.
• Be kind to yourself as you would to a loved one going through a similar experience.
• Practice being OK with things being out of your control.
• Practice mindfulness and meditation. They are a very powerful tool to overcome fear and anxiety.

What is it?

The feeling of hurt is a form of emotional pain not caused by physical sources. It usually is the result of the actions or words of others that cause you emotional distress such as feeling unhappy, sad, or betrayed. Emotional pain should be taken seriously because it can have a significant impact on your mental health (e.g.., deep sorrow, depre