These emotions are called \u201cprimary emotions<\/a>,\u201d and there are eight of them:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Emotions differ depending on the event’s significance. In other words, they are the meanings you make from a given situation and your responses to it\u2014psychological and behavioral. <\/p>\n\n\n\n As you can see, your emotions aren’t uncontrollable reactions (though you can’t control them sometimes); rather, they are made by you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Jennifer Partridge<\/strong>, an expert in the Emotional Freedom Technique and trainer of Mindvalley\u2019s Tapping Into Emotional Mastery<\/em> Quest, explains that our emotional patterns have supported us in remaining safe and connecting with our tribe to survive. <\/em>She says, “Emotions make us beautiful human beings, but some of our responses no longer serve our survival.”<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Emotions are made by you in reaction to your immediate environment. You can say that emotions are organized as concepts, guiding your actions and interpreting bodily sensations in every waking moment. They serve as the brain\u2019s tool to keep you safe and alive. <\/p>\n\n\n\n In fact, these concepts predict and simulate the outside world. Your brain continuously creates predictions and simulations, giving meaning to your experiences through emotions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What does it mean? <\/em>The world you experience is primarily subjective\u2014it’s one of your own creation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n You cannot control your emotions, to begin with. But what you CAN control is your response to it. It\u2019s a learned skill called emotional regulation<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Emotional regulation can be cultivated by taking a buffer of time between feeling the emotion and your reaction to it. This is what controlling<\/em> your emotions essentially means.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Yet, there are some causes and medical conditions that make you unable to control your reactions when unwanted emotions surface, such as:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Many of these conditions require long-term treatments to help people control their emotional responses better. Luckily, in most cases, you can learn emotional regulation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Humans aren\u2019t just animals with flesh striving to survive. Rather, we are spiritual beings in a human form, discovering ways to balance our emotional system. So your emotions, according to Jennifer, aren\u2019t to be feared but embraced with compassion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Here are seven practices you can apply to learn how to regulate your emotions and manage your responses better:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Instead of puzzling over how to shut off your emotions, listen to them and acknowledge what you\u2019re experiencing. Identify those feelings by labeling them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It may sound simple, but emotions aren\u2019t as linear as you think. There can be layers to them, where one emotion masks the other, or you can have multiple emotions at once.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When you put a name to what you feel, it discharges sensation and gives you a buffer time before reacting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Your emotional system serves your human right to joy, love, connection, and prosperity.<\/p>\n\u2014 Jennifer Partridge, trainer of Mindvalley\u2019s Tapping Into Emotional Mastery<\/em> Quest<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n Your emotions affect the way you perceive events. Moreover, your thoughts can either worsen or positively alter them. <\/p>\n\n\n\n For example, when your boss wants to see you immediately, you may feel anxious. So what\u2019s the common assumption? You assume you\u2019re going to be fired. <\/p>\n\n\n\n In other words, your emotional filter often gives you an unrealistic worldview. When you reframe your thoughts, you can change how you view the world. Most importantly, it can help you learn how to stop letting others control your emotions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Mindfulness is a moment-by-moment awareness of one\u2019s thoughts, feelings, and sensations. Researchers<\/a> from Michigan State University have found neural evidence that it can help regulate and control negative emotions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n So when you make a focused and deliberate effort to become aware of your emotions, you\u2019re essentially practicing mindfulness meditation<\/a>. It trains you to notice and observe the feelings that come through simply as they are and to accept emotional reactions as they arise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Listen to this quick but powerful mindfulness meditation on Omvana by Mindvalley:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n
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<\/figure>\n\n\n\nHow emotions are made<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
According to Lisa Feldman Barrett, author of the book How Emotions Are Made: The Secret Life of the Brain<\/em>, emotions are your brain\u2019s creation. Lisa explains that your brain creates an emotion from what your bodily sensations mean in relation to what is happening around you. <\/p>\n\n\n\nWhy can\u2019t I control my emotions?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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7 tips on how to control your emotions<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Tip 1: Listen to your emotions and label them<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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Tip 2: Reframe your thoughts<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Tip 3: Practice mindfulness meditation<\/h3>\n\n\n\n