Emotions represent bodily feelings experienced as arousal of the nervous system. Stress involves an emotional reaction, especially a reaction involving negative emotions. No one else can experience your feelings in the same way that you do. An implication of this fact is you have to be responsible for your feelings. They are not happening to anyone else. No one can make you angry except yourself.
Emotions are generated to signal a need. But how are emotion states generated? Research has provided arguments for and against what comes first – a feeling or a thought. Some writers argue that feelings are more important than cognition in determining attitudes. It has been quoted:
Since feeling is first, (he) who pays any attention to the syntax of things will never wholly kiss you.
It seems for some that human beings are ruled more by emotions than anything else. Perhaps this is true.
Other researchers recognise the minimum for cognitive-activated emotion being appraisal, or perception … one aspect of cognition that enables you to know and make decisions about the world. Emotion informs and influences intelligence. It seems possible that you could command through your emotions – thought comes before feeling.
Using cognitive-behavioral constructs and emotional intelligence insights, in 2004 Dr. Mike & Karen Gosling developed the emotional wealth system – EASEQuadrant® – which carries this idea further … that a person can influence their behaviour cognitively through developing their emotional intelligence.
Everything in life is about what you feel.
If you’re experiencing positive emotions, that’s great … This is a non-problem status. Enjoy your life.
If you’re feeling negative emotions … you are emotionally constipated and experiencing the physiological effects of negative emotion (stress).
