Emotions. States of Mind Reasonable Mind (Left Brain) Emotional Mind (Right Brain) Wise Mind Using...

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Emotions

Transcript of Emotions. States of Mind Reasonable Mind (Left Brain) Emotional Mind (Right Brain) Wise Mind Using...

Emotions

States of Mind

Reasonable Mind(Left Brain)

Emotional Mind(Right Brain)

Wise MindUsing both

reason (fact) and

emotion.

FactsInformationOther people’s opinions

Your own emotionsand reactions.

Emotions Emotions are neither good or bad, right or wrong. Feelings just ARE. They exist. There is a difference between having an emotion and doing something or acting on the emotion. Emotions don't last forever. No matter what you're feeling, eventually, it will lift and another emotion will take it's place. When a strong emotion comes, you do not have to act on your feeling. All you need to do is recognize the emotion and feel it. Emotions are not facts.

Emotions have 3 "jobs".

1. Communication to you and to others.

Emotions are communicated most powerfully by our faces, our voice tone and volume, our posture, and our gestures. Often other people can tell what we are feeling, even if we try to hide it.

2. Motivation or self-protection.

Emotions tell us to "ACT NOW!" or "STAY FOCUSED". They give us motivation to change a situation. Emotions save us time in important situations. We don't have to think everything through (You don't want to spend time thinking about running away from a snapping, growling dog!) Strong emotions help us overcome obstacles in our mind and in the environment. (Giving a speech in front a group of people or being able to break the car window when trapped in a car accident.)

3. Validation.

Emotions can give us information about a situation- they can be your "gut instinct". (But remember emotions are not facts. That 's when you must use your logical mind to determine the healthy response.)

There are 8 core emotions. You are born with these emotions wired into your brain. That wiring causes your body to react in certain ways and for you to have certain urges when the emotion arises. 8 core emotions:

AngerSorrow

JoyFear

DisgustGuilt

InterestSurprise

All other emotions are made up by combining these basic 8 emotions. Sometimes we have secondary emotions, an emotional reaction to an emotion. Examples of secondary emotions:

Feeling guilty when you get angry.Feeling angry when someone hurts your feelings (sorrow).Feeling anxious when receiving an award.

Secondary emotions are not wired into our bodies and brains, but are learned from our families, our culture, and others.

Example: You see your mom/dad become angry when another family member hurts their feelings, so you learn that if someone hurts your feelings, you should be angry.

Another example would be seeing your friends laugh and jump up and down when they receive a gift. You learn that when you receive a gift you should laugh and jump up and down.

When you have a secondary emotion, the key is to figure out what the core emotion is, so that you can demonstrate healthy skills to feel and then relieve your body of the emotion.

Naming Emotions Worksheet

How Emotions Feel In your body when you experience an emotion, chemical changes happen in your brain. These chemicals change how your body feels. (You sense an emotion.) You show these changes (or your emotions) in your face, posture, and gestures (body language).

How Emotions Feel Worksheet

Activities

BreathingNotice how your body feels

Emotions

Our Unique Emotional Responses Research shows us that the 8 core emotions cause a common reaction in all human beings! All human beings are the same in the way they feel and show these core emotions. However, every person is also unique. When you feel an emotion like anger, everyone feels tension in part of their body. But where you feel the most tension and exactly how you express anger is unique to you. (Example: Some people feel anger in their chest, others in their stomachs.)

Urges to do something are a natural part of having any emotion. For example , if you are bored, you may restlessly seek out something to interest you (perhaps annoying your sibling). Your urges may be different than another person's urges when they experience the same emotion. (For example, one person may want to avoid others when he/she is angry and another person may want to yell someone when they are angry.) In this unit, we will be emotions detectives, exploring how you feel in your body when you have an emotion, what your body tells others when you feel an emotion, what your urges are when strong emotions happen, and how to use healthy skills when experiencing emotions.

What’s the Difference WorksheetObserving and Describing Emotions Worksheet

STRONG Healthy habits are an important part of managing emotions. Keeping yourself healthy means you have more mental strength to manage your emotions. S sleep as much as you need- not too much, not too little.T take care of yourself. When you are sick, go to the doctor, rest.R resist drugs and alcohol.O once a day do something you enjoy.N nutrition- eat a variety of foods everyday.G get exercise. Try to do 20 min. of exercise a day.

STRONG Goals Worksheet

Activities

BreathingNotice how your body feels

Emotions

Pleasant events listSome emotions that we feel are painful or uncomfortable (anger, sorrow, fear, guilt). After identifying and feeling an unpleasant emotion, we may need to help our body and mind to "heal" from that emotion by doing a pleasant activity.

MeditatingTalking with a friendReading a magazineWatching TVSitting/Lying in the sunDrawingListening to othersPlaying an instrumentLooking outsideWatching a movieRepairing somethingBuilding somethingTaking care of plantsThinking “I’m a good person.”Writing a letterCookingSleepingDaydreamingWatching sportsWriting in a journal

Reading a letter.

Reading a bookEat lunch with a friendSolving puzzlesLooking at/sharing photosTaking a warm bath/showerPlaying a board game/card gameLaughing out loudPaintingSinging Watching the birdsGardeningDoodlingGoing for a walkMaking a gift for someoneListening to musicActingDancing

Emotions Toolbox Create an emotions toolbox that has activities that help relieve an unpleasant mood. Think of "tools" that can calm each of your senses. You can put each of these “tools” in a box or certain place in your house so when you are feeling an unpleasant emotion, you can go to your “toolbox”.

Example: Touch = silly putty

knitting Hear = playlist on your IPOD

sheet music for an instrument you play Sight = book

moviepuzzledrawing/art suppliesjournal

Taste/Smell = mints

fun flavored gumscented candlecookie cutters to bake

cookies