What do emotions do for us

They give us information about what we're experiencing and help us know how to react. We sense our emotions from the time we're babies. Infants and young children react to their emotions with facial expressions or with actions like laughing, cuddling, or crying. They feel and show emotions, but they don't yet have the ability to name the emotion or say why they feel that way. As we grow up, we become more skilled in understanding emotions.

Instead of just reacting like little kids do, we can identify what we feel and put it into words. With time and practice, we get better at knowing what we are feeling and why. This skill is called emotional awareness. Emotional awareness helps us know what we need and want or don't want! It helps us build better relationships. That's because being aware of our emotions can help us talk about feelings more clearly, avoid or resolve conflicts better, and move past difficult feelings more easily.

Some people are naturally more in touch with their emotions than others. The good news is, everyone can be more aware of their emotions. It just takes practice. But it's worth the effort: Emotional awareness is the first step toward building emotional intelligence, a skill that can help people succeed in life. Some emotions feel positive — like feeling happy, loving, confident, inspired, cheerful, interested, grateful, or included.

Other emotions can seem more negative — like feeling angry, resentful, afraid, ashamed, guilty, sad, or worried. Both positive and negative emotions are normal. All emotions tell us something about ourselves and our situation.

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Shen, L. Shigemune, Y. Neural mechanisms underlying the reward-related enhancement of motivation when remembering episodic memories with high difficulty. Simons, J. I will try your breathing suggestions to help with this. You help me understand my emotional spectrum and I love how you lead me to validate all my emotions and welcome them all. This is an important topic, as so many people do not learn how to feel and express their emotions. I love how you frame emotions as a tool for survival and the simple tips for how to get more in touch with your feelings.

I think self-compassion is particularly helpful for navigating an emotional experience. I really like this blog, Jenna! I appreciate that you normalize and explain why it can often be difficult for people to contact and express their emotions. The concrete tips you offer are very helpful. Thanks for this!

I really like this blog simply helped to differentiate a lot of things which is applicable in our daily life. Your email address will not be published. Register Now. Emotions are part of being human Think of emotions as waves of energy that flow through our bodies and communicate to us.

Read more: How Being Vulnerable Makes You Stronger Suppressing our emotions can lead to negative consequences down the road Not understanding or being in touch with your emotions can lead to some unfortunate consequences. Read more: Make Friends with Your Feelings Below are some tips for how to connect to and understand your feelings: Take a pause and observe: One of the easiest ways to start to tap into your emotions is to take a pause during the day and check in with yourself, both physically and mentally.

How are you feeling? Are you holding tension in your body. If so, where? What thoughts are running through your mind? These are some basic questions to ask yourself when you are taking a pause. Picture yourself as a detective who is curious about your physical sensations and thoughts and how they might be connected. Make the exhale longer than the inhale. Breathing deeply like this activates the vagus nerve, which is a part of our bodies that helps to regulate emotions and our nervous system.

When you are breathing deeply in this way, you are helping to regulate your emotions and their intensity in the moment. Practice self-compassion: Remind yourself that you are human, and all humans experience a full spectrum of emotions.