Learning to Understand Our Feelings

In order to face the new world, we need to explore the most emotive and creative part of ourselves. Our body communicates and reflects how we feel, and it offers us constant information about our mood. Thus, it’s of vital importance that we understand the messages that our feelings send us. Doing so affects our health as well as the way we interact with others.

It is important to differentiate between listening and hearing. To hear means to simply use the auditory sense. Listening has a special meaning of paying of attention. We might hear someone, but not listen to or understand them. Listening implies a commitment. It means to be there, perceive what our body and emotions tell us, what they are trying to transmit.

“Everything that exists, started with language. And language started with listening.”
– Jeanette Winterson –

Understand your body, speak to your emotions

The most common causes of illness are attitudes and negative emotions. The search for attention, avoiding unpleasant situations or running from them, these are situations in which our bodies speak. They usually produce symptoms as warning signs that something isn’t right.

People who don’t understand that these reactions are caused by the unpleasant emotions they experience, often suffer from physical illnesses caused by an emotional block.

There are various studies that support the power that emotions have on the human body. Researchers have found a strong relationship between pain and stress. Emotional stress can mark our body permanently.

The most frequent symptoms of emotional stress are as follows:

Emotions: depression or anxiety, irritability, fear, nervousness.
Thoughts: excessive fear of failure, excessive self-criticism, difficulty concentrating, difficulty making decisions, distorted thoughts.
Behaviors: brusque treatment of others, an increase in the consumption of tobacco, alcohol and other drugs, an increase or decrease in appetite, crying, teeth grinding.
Physical changes: muscular tension, cold and sweaty hands, insomnia, headaches, fatigue, back and neck problems, agitated breathing, sleep problems, sexual dysfunction.

Your body is your temple, listen to it.

Understand your mind, it speaks about you

As we have previously explained, our mental attitude can block us to the point of generating physical problems. This mental block originates when emotions bloom within us that make us lose our focus and even manage to disconnect us from what we’re doing. Negative emotions produce distractions. We stop paying attention to the activity we are performing and start to think about these emotions.

By paying attention to our mind, we will recognize our feelings and emotions. By listening to our inner me, we will prepare ourselves to overcome unpleasant feelings and emotions head on. Therefore, we’ll once again be able to focus on our day-to-day activities and life. This way, we prepare ourselves physically and mentally to recognize and isolate negative emotions. Recognizing these emotions is the first step to overcoming them.

The mind is responsible for higher thinking. It combines the senses, thought, judgement and memory. It allows us to weigh the cost and benefit of making reasoned decisions. It is possible that your inner voice is not always clear, but it is still trying to tell you something. Write a diary or journal, debate with your inner critic, seek tranquil places. In other words, learn to understand your mind.

Before getting mad, blaming yourself or becoming blocked, listen to your inner voice. Separate negative emotions and feelings from your mind. Prepare yourself physically and mentally to listen to yourself closely. Nobody is a better listener for your body than yourself.

Fighting yourself is the hardest battle there is. Beating yourself is the most beautiful victory.