Emotional ups and downs are an inevitable part of life, and sometimes negative emotions can get the best of us. When we bottle up our emotions instead of expressing them, they can weigh on us, overwhelm us – and they affect our mental state whether we realize it or not. The ability to understand and express your emotions in healthy ways is important to your overall wellness. To help you identify and express your emotions, consider the following advice.
How to Express Emotions
1. Identify your emotions
Take a moment to think about your emotions. Are you struggling with something? How do you feel today? Are you stressed, worried, insecure, anxious? Next, can you pinpoint
why you're feeling that way? Maybe you have a big work presentation or school exam coming up. Maybe you’re having relationship issues or coping with a loss. Maybe you’re struggling to balance work, family and personal life. No matter how big or small the reasons, recognizing the root cause of unsettling emotions is a great first step in expressing them.
2. Talk it out with others
Talking about your feelings can offer great relief. When you confide in a friend, family member or coworker about what’s on your mind, you may gain a better understanding of your emotions. Your friend also may provide genuinely helpful advice or much-needed reassurance that what you’re feeling is OK.
You might encourage them to open up to you in return. Practicing empathy can help you understand your loved ones (and even strangers) better. Go beyond small talk. Ask them how they’re doing and what’s going on in their life. Putting yourself in someone else’s shoes can help you to see new things from a completely different perspective. Just listening, communicating, emotionally connecting and withholding judgment can help in dealing with daily stresses.
For added support, look into natural flower essences to add to your wellness routine. Having troubles communicating openly? Try
Bach® Agrimony to encourage communication of true feelings, rather than hiding them behind a cheerful face.*
3. Practice positive self-talk
It’s important to listen to your mind and body, and to curb negative dialogue in your head. It’s easy to become wrapped up in our own thoughts, overthinking, overanalyzing and speaking to yourself in a negative manner. You wouldn’t speak to others that way, so why do it to yourself? Try to practice
positive self-talk and replace intrusive dark thoughts with brighter ones. Some
expert suggestions for doing this include:
Identify negative self-talk traps. Certain scenarios may increase your self-doubt and lead to more negative self-talk. Pinpointing when and where you experience the most negative self-talk can help you anticipate and prepare.
Check in with your feelings. Pause during events or bad days and evaluate your self-talk. Is it becoming negative? How can you turn it around?
Find the humor. Laughter helps relieve stress and tension. When you need a boost for positive self-talk, find ways to smile and laugh, such as watching funny animal videos.
Surround yourself with positive people. Whether or not you notice it, you can absorb the outlook and emotions of people around you. This includes both negative and positive emotions.
Introduce positive affirmations. Sometimes, seeing positive words or inspiring images can be enough to redirect your thoughts. Post small reminders on your office desk or on your bathroom mirror at home.
Interested in more support for confidence and positivity? Try
Bach® Larch for instilling a greater sense of self-esteem when lacking confidence, feeling insecure or fearing failure.*
4. Write in a journal
Journaling
is great way to record daily events for heart-warming memories, jot down to-do lists or make a wish-list of fun ideas for the future. It can help us to capture our emotions, and more specifically, practice gratitude to help with our emotional wellbeing and expressing ourselves. Take a few minutes each day to write down the things you’re grateful for: your health, family, friends or simply completing a chore you’ve been meaning to get to. This practice is known to boost self-esteem and self-improvement.
Journal writing is also an excellent way to relax your mind and body at night, as part of a mindful bedtime routine. Turn off the TV, put your cell phone on ‘do not disturb,’ and settle into bed with your journal.
Looking for other ways to unwind your mind at night?
Bach® White Chestnut encourages a peaceful, calm mind when thoughts and worries become repetitive or interfere with concentration or sleep.*
5. Welcome distractions
Welcomed distractions can be worked into your day to help you positively express your feelings. Activities might be creative (such as drawing, writing, cooking or gardening) or physical (such as working out at the gym, taking a yoga class with a friend, doing a home workout or simply going for a walk with your dog). Run an errand, call a friend, stop for a latte at your favorite cafe, listen to a new podcast, open a new book. Doing something to take your mind off negative emotions means you can immerse yourself into that activity as an act of self-soothing behavior.
If doing a certain activity or starting a new hobby feels daunting instead of motivating, try
Bach® Hornbeam to help restore energy to face the task ahead when procrastinating or feeling mentally weary.*
6. Consider using Bach Flower Essences to help balance emotions
Bach
® Original Flower Remedies are a system of homeopathy that are intended to address everyday stresses and emotional imbalances.* The 38 flower remedy tinctures are each derived from a different wildflower, plant or tree, and they correspond to a specific emotional state. Try taking two drops of a Bach
® remedy on your tongue, or adding it to your favorite drink, such as herbal tea, infused water or a smoothie. You can also combine up to seven different remedies to customize your own flower essence blend to help support your overall emotional wellness.
Incorporating these practices and using them to help manage your feelings can help you become more self-aware and lead to better mental and physical health. You may start to see improvements in your personal and professional relationships or find that you feel more content and at peace with your feelings. Being able to acknowledge that you are feeling a certain emotion and that it's acceptable holds a lot of power.
Rescue®, Rescue Remedy® and Bach® Original Flower Remedies brand products are a homeopathic dilution. Visit NelsonsDilution.com for details.
*Claims based on traditional homeopathic practice, not accepted medical evidence. Not FDA evaluated. Individual results may vary.
