Embracing Emotional Wellbeing
When we talk about health and wellbeing, most of us think of our bodies and physical health. There is no doubt that a healthy body is vital to our wellbeing, but there is another important part of our overall health – our emotional wellbeing. Emotional wellbeing is a positive sense of wellbeing which helps you and gives you the ability to function in society to meet the demands of your daily life.
We can get stuck in negative cycles where negative thoughts reinforce negative feelings, which in turn produce negative actions. We can struggle to get a “handle” on unpleasant feelings and may even feel like the unpleasant feelings are “spiraling out of control”. When we struggle to deal with our unpleasant feelings and can’t seem to “bounce back”, we are experiencing poor emotional wellbeing. When we have poor emotional wellbeing, we are also more likely to develop symptoms of psychological disorders such as depression and anxiety.
The phrase “emotional wellbeing” typically brings up pleasant associations such as excitement, happiness, love, and acceptance. However, how we handle unpleasant feelings we experience is actually the most significant indicator of our emotional wellbeing.
1 – The Dark Side of Emotions:
Emotions, especially painful ones can be triggered by any of the wide range of life-changing events. Whether it’s moving to a new country, settling into a new job or career change, a change in financial circumstances, the tragic loss of a loved one, a divorce, or an end to a long term relationship, change can be difficult to process and at times painful to even think about.
Our most natural and human instinct is to suppress emotional pain. To bottle it up and throw it out into the ocean. It’s easier to ignore it. And when we try to deal with the pain that’s in our heart, we often rely on logic to help us heal. That approach can do more harm than good. When we fight pain with logic, it actually leaves us in a place where we feel stuck, confused and overwhelmed. I’ve felt my share of confusion, paired with a lot of emptiness, and I definitely don’t want to go down that emotional rabbit hole again.
It’s time to get out of that cycle of being stuck over and over again. Through multiple evidence-based methods, such as movement, emotional healing or trauma recovery, it’s time to release that emotional weight and baggage you’ve been carrying around for too long.
2 – The Feeling of Movement
Emotional wellbeing is both correlated with and distinct from physical wellbeing. What you put in your body reflects on your emotional state and in turn highly affects your emotional wellbeing. I love comfort food as much as the next person, but make sure to incorporate clean or healthy food into your nutrition plan.
In addition, your body needs to rest and recharge. Lack of down time or sufficient sleep can have a big impact on your emotional wellbeing. Ever wonder why you feel so heavy with worry one night and wake up the next morning feeling a little – or a lot – lighter? Rest and relaxation has a direct link to your mood, so give your body – and heart – the rest it deserves.
Moreover, and I can’t stress this enough, get moving and stay active. Not only does it help manage your stress, but it releases the dopamine (that rush you feel after a good run!) that promotes good emotional wellbeing. Movement is the key. Whether it’s a jog around the block, a pilates class, a yoga session, dance lesson, or a bike ride. As part of the healing process in Purisoul’s program, movement is a pivotal part. Not only does it help your physical wellbeing, but it doubles up its effect and strengthens your emotional wellbeing. Through evidence-proven methods, Purisoul nourishes your soul and helps you release the negative emotions that resulted from the life-changing event you’ve encountered or gone through. Purisoul’s got you!
You can know more about physical wellbeing from our previous blog. Read more to know how physical wellbeing is a part of the program at Purisoul, and find out once and for all what sets mental wellbeing and emotional wellbeing apart.
3 – Emotional Healing & Trauma recovery
Emotional wellbeing doesn’t mean experiencing only pleasant feelings such as happiness, excitement and love. In fact, unpleasant feelings such as sadness, anger, worry and fear are completely normal and an important part of being human.
Luckily, unpleasant feelings are short lasting and with experience, most people learn to manage these feelings. But sometimes, unpleasant feelings don’t go away, are very strong or get worse with time. This is where Purisoul shines a guiding light on your road to trauma recovery and help you heal. An integral part of your healing journey at Purisoul is your emotional wellbeing. And with our evidence-based methods, you will be well on your way to healing your heart, nourishing your soul and empowering your spirit.
4 – Give it a boost
We all need a helping hand from time to time. I know I do. Your emotional wellbeing is no exception. If you drain your energy from taking care of others, suppress any negative emotions, or burn out at work, your wellbeing will take the damage. So it needs a little boost every now and then. How? I’m glad you asked!
You can boost your emotional wellbeing by being more aware of your emotions and reactions, and learning to express your feelings appropriately. Stop ignoring your emotions because that doesn’t make them go away. Build your emotional intelligence by welcoming all emotions, not just the positive ones.
You can also uplift your emotional wellbeing by shifting your perspective, maintaining a positive outlook and always try your best to think before you act. Trust me, that saved me from a whole lot of misunderstandings, miscommunication and misleading situations.
5 – Put a positive spin on it
Emotional wellbeing allows you to focus on the positive, and manage the negative emotions and feelings you may have in a given situation. This can help you forge stronger relationships with those around you. For instance, the person promoted into the role you had wanted, or the company leader who may have inadvertently overlooked you.
Emotional wellbeing is the ability to produce positive emotions, moods, thoughts, and feelings, and adapt when confronted with adversity and stressful situations. One of its foundations is resilience, which allows you to navigate challenging life events. Think of resilience like a muscle. It flexes and develops the more you use it. Resilience impacts how you face challenges and how you think about the challenges you face.
For example, when you’re passed up for a promotion at work, do you feel motivated to jump into a new professional development program, or do you feel resentful? Are you optimistic that another strong opportunity will come along when the time is right, or do you feel overwhelming disappointment that you missed this particular opportunity?
Emotional wellbeing means feeling good. Being happy experiencing positive emotions like love, joy or compassion, and feeling generally satisfied with life. That’s why emotional wellbeing is an important component of overall wellness. In addition to affecting how we perceive ourselves and the world around us, emotions influence how we feel physically, how much and what we eat, our energy and activity level, and how we relate to other people.
There is no quick fix or shortcut on your journey to emotional wellbeing. You need to be committed to doing the work it’s going to take to come out the other side stronger, better and more empowered!