Hello, there. I need help with reading my emotions. I've spent so many years suppressing them, that now that I'm ready to deal, I'm not sure how to
A) Identify them for what they are
B) find the root to where they come from.

I'd appreciate any help and advise. Thank you.

[hannabee]

I sure hope you get some helpful responses! I could use help in this area as well. I still just try and shove them away and pretend they don't matter. Then I usually feel guilty for having them. sucks really. I wonder how others handle it too!

[gayleggg]

I usually start out by trying to identify what the feeling is. I usually use a feelings chart, such as:

Or use a smiley chart. Then I try to back track to figure out why I'm feeling that way. It's usually either something that has happened or that I fear will happen. I find journalling helps. I usually start off with "I'm feeling _______ because of _______". It gets easier as you practice. There are also apps for smart phones that let you chart your moods. These can be helpful, too.

I've been googling it to find out. I came across an interesting analogy. One lady described emotions as a child trying to get his mom's attention. At first, he'll call her name, then he pulls her sleeve, insistent now and if she still ignores him, he throws a tantrum. Mine's been throwing a tantrum for a while. Now that I'm ready to listen, I don't know where to begin. I'll keep reading though. I have to get this sorted.

I hope you find the help you need, too, Hannabee. Suppressing emotions and having them pop up when you least expect itt is the worst!

Thank you for this Gaylegg. It might help. . I'll save it and give this a try.

[orangyred]

You know, I hadn't thought about it this way. I hadn't really thought about not dealing with my emotions. And same here, some of them have been throwing fits. Usually in the form of depression or anger (if I'm reading into this correctly). Thanks for this insight.

Keep looking and listening for the answers! They come slowly for me. Sometimes I don't even recognize them.

The other day, however, I was really depressed about feeling rejected and then I heard something to the effect that people don't always recognize that they hurt us with their actions. Which fit for me in this case. There was more than that, but the whole thing just helped. It helped me to look at the other side. For a while I would dismiss even that helpful information because I had feelings too and didn't want to ignore those (another form of rejection). But I'm getting better about that. I can have my feelings, but still see that the person may not have meant to hurt. At least in that instance.