Emotional resiliency is the ability to adapt and recover from a negative experience. That means developing skills that help you identify, understand, and manage your emotions better in response to life changes. The last two years have been difficult on everyone and has taken its toll on all of our emotional well-being. You may have suffered a loss. The possible loss list is long and may include a loved one, employment, time, social activities, routine, financial stability, and optimal health just to name a few. None of us have been unscathed.
After experiencing a viral pandemic over the past two years,
we are now facing a behavioral health pandemic. The CDC reports that COVID-19
cases were “highly positively correlated
with anxiety and depression severity scores”. Translation: COVID hasn’t just run down our
bodies, but our minds too. Similar to the vaccine strengthening your body’s
immune response, there are things
we can do to build and strengthen our emotional response and become more emotionally
resilient.
Many of us have been in situations where we have let our
emotion (usually negative) take control. The result is usually additional
negative consequences. Let’s say you had an argument with your partner in the
morning and, not paying attention to the time, you were late to work.
Throughout the day you are short-tempered with your colleagues, even though
they had nothing to do with being late to work. If you continue to take your
frustration out on your co-workers, the situation may lead to more negative
consequences and a more negative experience, or hurt feelings at the very
least. This is an example of not being emotionally resilient. You were unable
to “go with the flow” and recover from your morning setback.
Ok, easier said than done! How do I make the change?
- The first step is to identify the emotion. Are you angry? Frustrated? Did you have anxiety? Maybe you have more than one emotion. You could have been angry with your partner and had anxiety over being late to work.
- Once you identify the emotion, you can spend some time understanding it by asking questions like:
- What is the purpose of my emotion?
- What is it trying to tell me?
- Is this emotion helpful?
- How does my body respond to this emotion? (i.e. pounding heartbeat, sweaty palms, etc.)
- In what situations do I feel this emotion?
- After you’ve spent some time identifying and understanding the emotion, you can practice managing it – trying to control the emotion instead of letting it control you.
- If the emotion is not helpful (probably not if you are trying to manage it) and you are able to understand how your body reacts to the emotion, you can start to intervene.
- It is common to take shorter breaths when someone has anxiety. When you have anxiety, you can practice breathing exercises that slow your breathing down.
- You may also go for a walk or step out of the situation for a moment to regain control.
- Mindfulness, exercise, breathing, good sleep and eating healthy are all examples of practicing self-regulation daily.
If you are having trouble
managing your emotions on your own, Clinton County Mental Health and Addiction
Services is here to support you. Click here
to learn more.
Director of Community Services
Clinton County Mental Health & Addiction Services
