We all love ‘how to’ lists. It feeds our go to need to get things done quick.

Working through our emotions to create a better life is a life long ‘How To’. However, knowing that each one of our emotions can be addressed in one or more ‘90 Second’ waves is not just a ‘thing’ to do, but is backed up by science.

Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor, a neuroscientist and author of My Stroke of Insight, suggests that when an emotion, such as anger, is triggered, chemicals released by your brain surge through your body and activate bodily sensations. Then, within roughly 90 seconds, they’re flushed out of your bloodstream. You might experience these feelings as a “wave” that begins with this biochemical rush and ends with the flush. This chemical rush or wave brings about uncomfortable physical sensations, such as blushing, heat in your arms, or heaviness in your chest, as mentioned earlier.

This is the key and worthy of repeating: What we feel emotionally is often experienced first in the body as a physical sensation. Simply put, unpleasant emotions don’t physically feel good in our bodies.

Feelings Are A Source of Protection and Growth

Remember, the brain is engaged in the exchange of information from constant input and output to the rest of body and back. You can consider feelings one source of information that exists for your protection and growth. Your ability to face the circumstances, challenges, obstacles, traumas, tragedies, losses, and even successes that you experience in life essentially comes down to how well you comfortably experience and move through emotions, including – and especially – these eight unpleasant feelings:

* Sadness
* Shame
* Helplessness
* Anger
* Embarrassment
* Disappointment
* Frustration
* Vulnerability

When you can experience and move through these eight difficult feelings, you are on your way to emotional strength and confidence. The next time your feelings emerge, pay attention. Take a moment, breathe, and really notice what is taking place inside of you on a physiological level. Experience the wave.

This weeks questions:

Now that you know what the ‘sensation’ is when you experience an emotion, reflect on when you experienced that sensation. What emotion where you feeling?

I’d love for you to respond on my facebook group!

Join my group on Facebook LOVE MY LIFE and let me know. I’ll post the question and jump on myself to chat and answer questions you may have, on Wednesday at 3:00 pm Pacific.

To A Life You Love,

Dr. Joan Rosenberg