EMOTIONS - they either cause your life to become a rocky road or a bed of roses. Why do I say that? Well, it's our emotions which tend to rule our lives. So much so that sometimes we forget that we are supposed to control our emotions rather than the other way round. So when our emotions control us, we experience a whole load of unnecessary heartaches, headaches and most of all misery in life.

Lots of us aren't able to handle our emotions and that's why we feel helpless many a time. So what can we do? Well for starters, we could change how we think. It's our thoughts which cause us emotions. If we can fix our thoughts, we can fix our emotions.

Next, we should consciously begin to think with logic rather than with our emotions. What do I mean by that? Well, let's say that we received feedback from someone. Invariably, we tend to get defensive about feedback. Hardly do we stop and think logically about why we received a particular feedback. Our defensive nature is stirred up because our emotions come to play in the situation. If we are able to distinguish between logic and emotions, I think we're well on our way to controlling our emotions, don't you think?

Thirdly, I think we should exercise discretion on when and how to use our emotions. Funny, because a lot of times when our emotions are expressed, time and place are never taken into consideration. A little tough to practise, we may think but believe me, when we become mindful of this, it becomes habitual.

Last but not least, our attitude is the biggest culprit in creating the roller coaster rides which our emotions put us through. I've always been a firm believer that our attitude determines our thoughts and actions. If your attitude goes astray, the chain reaction it could have on our thoughts and actions could be adverse enough to affect our perception of life.

Nobody is saying that we are not entitled to feelings and emotions we are. At the same time we also have the right (and responsibility) to select and use thoughts that benefit and enrich our life, and those around us.

Re-think your attitudes about your circumstanceschange your thoughtsand you will significantly change your feelings and emotions (at least enough to positively affect your daily life).

Tips to Control Emotions

1. Learn to recognize and anticipate "trigger" points that could set our thoughts to go
askew. Being wary of such situations will give us time to react in the right manner.

2. Watch out for extreme situations which could cause to make irrational decisions.

3. If at all you find yourself unable to help the situation, seek professional help.

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