Emotional Balancing
Posted on Jan 09, 2021 by Dr. Param Shah
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The human mind is said to be one of the most complicated to understand. Not only is it detailed and very intricate but can also cause a lot of trouble if it gets imbalanced. Balancing the mind is like walking on a tight rope and juggling a lot of things while trying to maintain your balance and not fall off.
You may agree that some people can maintain an emotional balance very well, while some struggle to cope with it. So, what is emotional balancing? Emotional balance occurs when we allow ourselves to feel whatever comes up, without feeling stifled or overwhelmed and learn to accept our feelings without being judgmental about the same. Being out of balance emotionally usually involves either not allowing yourself to experience your feelings as they evolve by avoiding or suppressing them or being so attached to and identified with them that your feelings are all-consuming.
Let us understand this with a simple example of a pressure cooker. Pressure cookers are instruments of balance in as much as a lid is required to keep the contents from spilling all over the place, but a means to release the accumulating pressure is also necessary. If there is no release valve to provide a safe path to expression, what happens? The pressure builds up until the vessel can no longer contain it and it explodes, causing potentially serious damage. Similarly, if we don’t provide our emotions a safe (though at times uncomfortable) path to expression by allowing ourselves to feel them consciously, they will still find a way out—often through some sort of unhealthy, self-defeating, and/or explosive behaviour. This can be varying in intensity like the mild forms being crying or banging to hitting or even hurting self or others.
This can be handled well if appropriate intervention is provided from an external agent such as professional help in the form of counselling or behaviour specialist. There was a point in my career where I felt I was not able to release the mental pressure and was unable to have an emotional balance. That is when I decided to seek help from a specialist. And after the intervention, I felt a difference in my emotional and mental wellbeing.
It is extremely important to have an emotional balance at all times to have a happy and healthy life. If we are not emotionally stable, there is all possibility that we may be hampering the emotional stability of the people around us as well. A stressed-out father gets angry at the poor grades of his son. The son who is trying to cope up with the scenario loses his cool and hits his younger sister. The little kid cries her way all through the dinner which upsets the mother. The mother does not get a good night's sleep worrying about her family and is not able to perform well at work and hence loses on an important business deal.
The important thing to note is not to blend two situations and strike a balance between work and family lives. Also, if you are not able to manage the work stress, do not take out your anger on your family, which generally elders, and youngsters do. It is better to either let out your feelings to your family or friends or anyone who you think will be able to help you without being judgmental. If the situation is serious, it is best to seek professional assistance.
In the times of the pandemic where work pressures are bound to increase with rising risks of losing jobs, families need to be united and help each other rather than being judgmental. Even providing a pleasant environment or just a listening ear is sometimes enough to help an emotionally stressed individual gain stability.