Emotional Control Techniques To Live Better

In our daily life there are events that affect us and that are beyond our control. The way we react to these difficulties will guarantee us a better or worse quality of life. Thus, a fantastic way to deal with these unexpected events is to apply adequate emotional control techniques. Thanks to them, we will feel more confident and capable at any time and in any circumstance.

Antonio Damasio, a well-known Portuguese physician and neurologist, reminds us in his books that the world of emotions was, up to the late 20th century  , a field of study of little interest on a scientific level.  There were excellent works by William James and, for many neurology and behavioral science professionals, they were more than enough. It was Damasio who paved this path, who tried to understand at an empirical level how emotions affect the decisions we make.

Feelings, as well as the emotional world, configure a very sophisticated mechanism that is directly connected to our thoughts and conduct.  Understanding these processes, managing them and controlling them to put them in our favor, will certainly be of great use. It will help us to create the reality we want, to feel more confident about ourselves …

Let’s see how to do it.

Emotional control techniques

Every decision, every thought, every step we take in our daily life is imbued with some emotion.  No human being is harmless, anyone has a motivation, an anchored memory, an enclosed desire or an imprinted fear. The origin of everything is found in a brain structure as wonderful as it is complex: the limbic system.

This brain area orchestrates much of what we are or do. However, it doesn’t always allow us to give the best of ourselves. Sometimes, emotions cloud us and compromise our way of approaching us, our thinking. We act and react in an immeasurable way, we get stuck or even get the feeling that everything is out of our control.

To avoid or reduce these situations, there is nothing better than making use of adequate emotional control techniques. Let’s see some examples.

1. Check your thoughts

Cognitive-behavioral psychology always offers us useful emotional control techniques.  It can be of great help to remember this simple strategy:

We cannot radically change our emotions, but we can improve our mental approach.

When fear, anxiety or worry takes over and controls us, we need to stop the flow of thoughts that feed our negativity. It is necessary to say “enough” and divert these arguments on a more constructive and useful side. For example: tomorrow I will be ridiculous at the conference, everything will be bad ⇔ I have prepared for the conference, I have a good command of the subject and I want to enjoy the day talking to others about the work I have done in this period.

2. Broaden your point of view

People usually look at the world from a tunnel perspective,  that is , they focus on a point, on a small existential grain in which all thoughts and emotions are concentrated. We forget how healthy it is to step back and look at the world from a broader perspective, oxygenating ideas, distancing ourselves from certain people, situations and habits that trap us.

Whenever we feel stuck, without ideas and obsessed with stress, let’s get away from it a little. We look up and see life from a broader perspective .  The world is full of possibilities.

3. Breathe deeply

On several occasions we have talked about the deep breathing technique. It is as simple as it is an effective resource for regulating and controlling emotions whenever they block or overwhelm us. To do this, look for a quiet and relaxed space and perform the following steps:

• Sit down with your back straight.
• Breathe in air through your nose for 5 seconds. We try to make sure that all the air reaches the abdomen region to facilitate diaphragmatic breathing.

• We hold the air for 6 seconds.
• Then we exhale from the mouth for 7 seconds.

We repeat the cycle several times. The feeling of calm is immediate.