I think somewhere, somehow, our emotions are directly hard wired into our survival programming. For example, anger triggers the release of adrenaline – you know, the flight or fight hormone. As we’ve learned, happiness triggers the release of serotonin, which is responsible for regulating many aspects of our health, including metabolism and digestion. These are direct correlations between emotions and survival.
So, it’s important to understand that when we talk about reframing our emotions, we understand that it’s a big deal. We’re actually going against the very programming that is responsible for our survival.
To do so requires conscious effort and time. It’s not done in an instant. It is a process. It’s a marathon, not a sprint.
When we realize this, perhaps we can give ourselves a break when we react emotionally to a situation, rather than respond consciously.
Thank you MJ for sharing that valuable reflection! It gave me another thought: when we sprint we quickly get exhausted but when we run a marathon we can adjust our pace to put ourselves in a status of using our muscles optimally for a very long time.
Thank you! Great way reframing the process.
I like thinking about it in those terms. Thank you.
Very good, Mary. Everything is a choice if we can frame it correctly. MKE gives us the tools to do exactly that! 🙂