Living in the modern tech era has many advantages, but also one huge setback: lack of time to devote to self-care and processing emotions. We don’t have the time to feel anymore, so we just pile up all the emotions inside until we breakdown. Mental space can get cluttered just as your working desk, and equally – it can interfere with your daily life and tasks you need to get done. This can lead to a constant feeling of emotional exhaustion, severe tiredness, or overall unhappiness. Here’s what you can do about it.
1. Write it all down
Try out different exercises to boost your emotional intelligence. You need to strengthen your capacity of acknowledging others’ emotions and your own. Learn how to label them correctly and how to process them. Four words: map out your problems. In order to clean up the emotional mess, you firstly have to identify what it is. Consider keeping an emotional journal: commit to at least 30 minutes per day to analyze the situations and emotions you’ve experienced. A paper and a pen will help you get a clearer perspective. If you find it hard to handle everything, appoint a consultation with a psychologist.
2. Take a holistic approach
Deconstructing the reasons why people feel insecure about their looks might bring us the conclusion that media is to blame, along with societal pressure, unrealistic beauty standards, degraded values or the overall superficial approach to one’s personality. Do what you can to improve your lifestyle, but do it for yourself: exercise has many mental benefits and it will help you balance out. Turn to alternative ways of physical exercise that will keep you fit and in harmony with yourself. Meditation is proven to literally change the structure of your brain and it influences your ability to be more present and aware of your feelings.
3. Be unapologetic
Going under a knife should not be advocated as a quick solution, but you should not exclude plastic surgery as merely a thing of vanity, or make it a taboo topic when science-backed data shows aesthetic procedures can support you on the path to self-acceptance. In 2011, an astonishing 15 million people around the world went under the knife. It’s a global phenomenon.
Australian studies have shown that plastic surgery can have positive psychological effects on one’s self-esteem and body image, so increasing number of people turn to plastic surgery; American studies have shown the same, where Miami is considered to be a leading location for the procedures; European researchers came to the same conclusions – there are long-term improvements in mental health and an increase of overall life happiness after going under the procedure. While there are extreme cases where a person goes through hundreds of procedures and remains unsatisfied, this has to do with deeper psychological issues, most frequently a body dysmorphic disorder. If you’re really struggling with some of your physical features, be unapologetic about it and look through your options.
4. The “avoid” list
If it’s too hard to be proactive and understand what you’re supposed to do in order to get rid of junk emotions, turn it around and make a mental list of what NOT to do. Here are the main things you should focus on: relationships (are they a two-way street, do you feel emotionally drained, is it over-dramatic); self-talk (do you forgive yourself for mistakes and failures, are you harmful and keep comparing yourself to others); reality check (are you satisfied with where you are, do you have a plan, how does it make you feel).
5. Learn to say no
No to people that use you; no to favors your friend keeps rudely asking for; no to additional work when you’re already swamped; no to emotional blackmails and relationships with others that make you feel unworthy. If you’ve planned a peaceful Saturday at home, say no to going to the party you don’t feel like going to. Setting boundaries in relationships with others is emotionally good for you.
Take these 5 things into consideration to get rid of emotional junk. You will feel relieved and more ready to cope with everyday life.