SADNESS YOUR NEGLECTED EMOTION
Sadness is a neglected emotion. As humans we have a wide range of emotions. However, in my experience as a psychologist, most people have emotional rigidity and only allow themselves to feel a few emotions, such as anger, irritation, frustration, and maybe fear. But there are close to two hundred labels that describe what should be a wide range of emotional flexibility. Sadness itself can be described as disappointment, hurt, heartbreak loneliness, inadequacy, or grief.
If you are patient with yourself you could allow yourself to journal for five minutes about each of the above words and by simply doing the work of journaling you will increase your emotional flexibility. However, I imagine most of you will not do that simple exercise because most of those emotions are heavy and unpleasant. Your writing might even make you want to cry. Our western society is fairly crying phobic, meaning you will do anything before you allow yourself to cry. I also imagine that the “go-to” emotion is anger. Anger has a way of helping you feel powerful and in control. With anger you can intimidate others, create a large boundary around you (no-one wants to be around angry people), and sometimes anger can make others do something different from the normal. Thus experiencing sadness is neglected.
The ramifications of not allowing yourself to process your sadness lead to some very serious consequences including clinical depression and despair. Those emotions often lead to physical ailments or even suicidal behavior. Suicide rates are up in our society leaving those left behind a whole myriad of emotions.
On Tuesday November 6th, at 1:00 p.m. I will be addressing the emotion of sadness in a free 30 minute webinar. You are welcome to join me by clicking the following link.
I will be addressing:
Why I think sadness is neglected.
How to move toward sadness.
How to keep sadness from turning into despair.
SCROLL to bottom for Zoom Link.
Email me if you have questions at Drrobinbdilley@gmail.comk
Cancer Patients: This is For You
It is with you in mind that I started the free Tuesday at 1:00 Conversations with Dr. Dilley. However, I received several emails requesting to attend the free webinars. If you missed the first webinar, I focused on Staying Positive During Cancer Diagnosis. I spoke about how the research is currently stating that a positive attitude has little or no effect on cancer outcomes. However, the outcome of any cancer diagnosis is interdependent on a diverse number of facts. In the meantime, your attitude about having cancer will help you have a much better time during your treatment process, if you maintain a positive attitude. I shared three keys to help you maintain a positive attitude:
1. Focus on what makes you smile. I didn’t say what makes you happy. Focus on photos that bring a smile to your face, a vase of flowers, or a simple memory of those you love and care about.
2. Use your breath to regulate your emotions. Simple breathing in and breathing out, slowly, deliberately, and focused.
3. Let go of the “outcome.” In Buddhist tradition our suffering is often caused by focusing on what we want vs. where we are. Stay present with the treatment process and let the outcome be whatever it is. You have no control over that.
This Tuesday November 6 at 1:00 p.m. MST I will be talking about Sadness as a Neglected Emotion addressing these three issues:
Why I think sadness is neglected.
How to move toward sadness.
How to keep sadness from turning into despair.
Please join me at 1:00 Tuesday 6 MST by clicking link below. Questions please email me at drrobinbdiley@gmail.com.
Dr. Robin B. Dilley is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.
Topic: Dr. Robin B. Dilley’s Zoom Meeting
Time: Nov 6, 2018 1:00 PM Arizona
Join from PC, Mac, Linux, iOS or Android: https://zoom.us/j/561218716
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Dial(for higher quality, dial a number based on your current location):
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Meeting ID: 561 218 716
International numbers available: https://zoom.us/u/aeaa4Bzll2