The heavy weight of emotions

 I never truly took the time to factor in the heavy weight that emotions may bring to life. As a person who falls into the Highly Sensitive People (HSP) category, I feel the weight of my own emotions and other people's emotions greatly. It is like carrying a heavy backpack of rocks around. As an educator and parent of young children, too busy to truly take the time to take apart this weight, I reacted by sleeping less, doing more, and from time to time, facing utter exhaustion, frustration, and/or strong energy-draining reactions. Now as a caretaker for loved ones, I am taking more time to study this emotional backpack and how to diffuse it in positive, proactive ways. 

First, our emotional responses are real, and while some may want to rate your responses on a good to bad scale, the truth is that emotions are emotions, neither good or bad, and we all feel a variety of emotions for any event due to our place in life, past/present experiences, physical/mental make-up, and more. 

Next, it's good to figure out where your emotions are coming from and how to handle those emotions. For example, if you are having what seems like a too-great emotional response, perhaps you are taking on more than you can handle or perhaps your work is misdirected or undersupported. Too-great emotional responses can create an undue weight on other aspects of your life, so you do want to keep your emotions in check or at a just-right level if possible. 

Third, once you figure out what your emotional response is and its weight on your life, you will want to figure out how to handle that response in effective ways. 

Recently I went through this process. As I considered the emotional backpack, it became clearly apparent that the emotions I was experiencing were a natural reaction to an impactful event. There was no way I was going to rid my life of those emotions at this time, so it had more to do with how to handle that heavy weight instead. 

As I looked over the specific details, I came up with the following responses:

• Create a home environment that supports relief from those heavy emotions
• Be discerning with conversation related to the situation--as misdirected talk can add to the stress.
• Look for and implement activities that counteract the heavy weight of the emotions. 

We will all experience the heavy weight of emotions. Some of us will feel this weight more than others, and we will experience this more or less from time to time and event to event. It's important to recognize the impact of these emotions, and then deal with it with as much healthy positivity as possible. Onward.