Sunday, January 19, 2014

Taking control of your moods

      I will be very blunt and use some language uncharacteristic of me, I woke up a bitch this morning! I just woke up really angry and frustrated today. But that's not the way I want to be. I've had a really good weekend with my husband, and I managed to work on my blog, and my boutique. After this post I'm hoping to work on my book some more, too. Wow, actually just thinking of what I've accomplished so far and what I still want have to do has calmed me down some. That's exactly why I wanted to write this in the blog right now.
     I find emotions are often misleading, and sometimes can take you over completely by surprise. Like waking up angry this morning, or in fear or sadness. I don't depend on my emotions to dictate  my actions anymore. They are too fleeting and unreliable. I always temper what I am feeling with logic (e.i. I ask myself is there a reason to feel this way) so that I am not overreacting or acting irrationally. Some emotions I believe are good to give into completely and openly, but most need to be examined before letting them run wild.
     Today when I examined how I was feeling I found no just cause for those emotions. No one had hurt me or done me wrong, I just simply woke up angry. So now I am changing my mood. I will not allow this emotion to rule my day and possibly ruin it by being unintentionally cruel to someone I love. First step to the change is done, examining the emotion. Second is to change my pattern of thinking. This is the hard part because my mind is making angry thoughts. That's why I am writing this and broke down my accomplishments in the first paragraph. If I take the focus off how I feel and put it on something else it becomes easier to ignore the emotion. Next step is to do something that makes me feel good, that's why I will be making some tea and writing in my book. The fourth step is a quote I hear used a lot, 'fake it till you make it' this is where I make a concentrated effort to feel happy or at least appear happy until I actually feel that way. The final step is to pray, ask God for guidance and control over these rogue feeling so that you can be at peace, and thank Him for being with you.
     I have found that these steps are good to combat anxiety too, along with exercise of any kind. I think it's because anxiety is also based on a negative emotion, fear.  I know it's harder for some than others but with a lot of work and practice it can be done. When I first started trying to control my emotional waves its was really hard, but I am finding its easier now because I know I have to start as soon as I realize that I am feeling unfounded negativity. The sooner I start fighting back to feel the way I want, the sooner I start to feel happy again and the more things I have to be happy about. Happiness is a choice. I choice to live happy.

Lamentations 3:17
I have been deprived of peace; I have forgotten what posterity is.

Acts 14:17
Yet he has not left himself without testimony; he has shown kindness by giving you rain from heaven and crops in their season; he provides you with plenty of food and fills your hearts with joy.

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