A Guide To Emotions | Psychology Tools

In evolutionary terms, the human way of solving problems by thinking about them and deliberately weighing up the pros and cons is a very recent addition to the world. 

Animals don’t think and reason in the same way that we do, but for millions of years they have had to solve complex problems like “Should I eat this new food that I’ve found?” and “is this a safe place to sleep?”. How do they do it? The answer is that emotions and ‘feeling states’ guide them to make decisions about how to operate in the world.

Some people prefer to view emotions as a guide rather than a problem. When they are feeling something strong they might ask “What is this feeling telling me to do?”, or “What does my heart (or gut) tell me?”. With the proviso that we are not saying anything is ‘wrong’ with having emotions, psychologists have some ‘rules of thumb’ about when emotions can become problematic:

• Strong feelings go on for too long
• They interfere with our ability to live our lives
• They are out of proportion to what most other people would feel in that situation
• We become scared of our own body feelings. 

Clinical and counselling psychologists, therapists, and counsellors around the world practise many different forms of psychotherapy. Each school of therapy has different theories, techniques, and teachings, but they all aim to help people to manage their emotional lives. The stances towards emotion of two popular models of therapy are described here: 

• Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). 
• Acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT).

Take some time to reflect on the role emotions play in your life at the moment by asking yourself the questions below. You can fill in your answers on the How Does Emotion Affect Your Life worksheet.

• What do I feel too much of?
• What do I feel too little of?
• What do my emotions get in the way of me doing?
• What do my emotions lead me to do too much of?
• Where in my body do I notice emotions most strongly?
• What is important to me? (What are my goals? What are my values?)
• If I was living my life the way I truly wanted to, what would I be doing more of?