These are the 5 benefits of negative emotions
In recent years we have experienced the rise of currents that defend everything that relates to positivism or happiness. However, this "goodness" is far from the reality of people and can even become frustrating.
The truth is that Negative emotions are also important , and although they are always obvious to us, they can provide us with a large number of benefits. Next, we will talk about them and how they can help us.
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The importance of these mental states
Traditionally, society has taught us to think that negative emotions and feelings can not bring us any benefit and that they only give us moments of grief, frustration, anxiety or fear, as well as a great amount of tears conceived as useless.
But nevertheless, Negative emotions are necessary . Reaching mental equilibrium is only possible if we experience all kinds of emotions. The moment we begin to repress any feeling that is unpleasant to us, we fall into the error of not fully developing as people on a psychological level.
The experience of different experiences in which all kinds of emotions appear, they mold us as people and help us to grow completely; This being the first and most important benefit of negative emotions.
Obviously, if we settle into these psychological states, or let them invade our mind on a daily basis, we could run the risk of developing some kind of psychological disorder. However, experienced in a natural way are essential to maintain our mental balance.
The need for wealth of experiences
If we only experience positive emotions or experiences, if we never let out some negative feelings or associated with suffering, we could never become complete persons and the frustration would take over us .
In the same way, without negative emotions we would not give any value to all those positive experiences or feelings and, in the same way, we could not differentiate between what is right or what is wrong in our life.
Therefore, it is necessary to assimilate that we do not have the obligation of always feeling happy, but of we must accept our feelings whether they are positive or negative. This can be tremendously complicated, since we are not used to facing them, either out of fear or comfort.
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What are the benefits of negative emotions?
Although it is sometimes difficult to believe, if we manage our emotions well, experience negative feelings or experience moments of distress, it provides mental equilibrium, as well as knowledge about ourselves and skills to solve and face more easily, future unpleasant situations .
In general, the main benefits that negative emotions bring us are mental balance and experience. In addition, each of the negative emotions can provide us with a much more specific set of skills.
1. Mental or emotional balance
As mentioned above, the main benefit of experiencing negative emotions is reaching or maintain stability or mental balance that we will not achieve if we repress them.
Emotional balance is essential to experience inner calm, improve our self-esteem and live life in a full way; and this, obviously, includes negative emotions.
Of course, each emotion has its concrete moment and opportunity to appear, and that is when we must allow ourselves to experience it. If we do not let them emerge, they will remain dormant within us and eventually appear at the least opportune moment.
If one day we get up on the wrong foot and we feel in a bad mood, or a situation occurs that makes us sad and we feel like crying, we should not repress these emotions. We have to be able to experience them and let them flow, so that they pass by and we can feel good again completely .
However, although we can not feel guilty for the emotions we experience, the acts or behaviors that we carry out guided by them are our responsibility. That is, we should not hide behind them to do whatever we want.
Finally, one of the keys to achieving mental balance is forget about what society imposes on us , living and finding our own balance between positive and negative emotions.
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2. Skills and experience
As well as the experience that all kinds of situations give us, the experience of negative emotions also provides us with a series of skills and knowledge that will help us face future complications in a more effective way and with less emotional intensity.
Just as we learn to relate to other people, the emergence and experience of negative emotions teach us to manage with them and manage them correctly in next circumstances.
It is useless to want to experience only one type of emotion, either positive or negative, since the rest will end up appearing sooner or later and its containment only deprives us of the possibility of learning from all kinds of feelings.
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Advantages of some negative emotions
In the previous point it is mentioned that there is a specific series of emotions or feelings, traditionally described as negatives that, well managed and experienced in an effective way, can provide us with a series of skills or skills that are really useful to face everyday situations .
1. Sadness
Sadness is a common and basic emotion. Experiencing feelings of sadness is something natural since there are an infinity of factors that can turn a happy day into a sad one.
If we do not let it settle in us and stay longer than necessary, sadness is very useful in the development of problem solving .
However, we must go with caution, since if we let it flow for too long it can affect our self-esteem or become a depressive condition.
2. Annoyed
Several studies have found evidence that the feeling of anger is a motivator of analytical thinking, which helps us think more rationally. It is necessary to specify that this refers to the emotion of anger, which It should not be confused with anger , with which it happens rather the opposite.
A badly managed feeling of anger can turn into anger; And while anger helps us release tension, anger increases this emotional and mental tension.
3. Shame or shyness
Although, a priori, shame is not considered as an essential emotion or with positive or negative overtones, it is true that some people do not consider it beneficial.
However, thanks to the feelings of shyness we analyze better how we relate and interact with other people , being a little more introspective and helping us to get to know each other a little better.
4. Fear or worry
Fear is an adaptive reaction that helps us to stay alert to a danger . A sensation of fear rational and proportionate to the context that surrounds us can help us to maintain the perspective about what surrounds us.
However, when this fear becomes disproportionate or irrational it can turn into anxiety or into any of the affections associated with it, so that, as in the rest of the emotions, the key is to not let them dominate us.
5. Disgust
The feeling or feeling of disgust helps us maintain our health, both physically and emotionally , since it makes it easier for us to get away from what may be harmful or harmful.
