Content

• Steps
• Method 1 of 3: Understand your emotions
• Method 2 of 3: Prepare to Express Your Emotions
• Method 3 of 3: Express your emotions in public
• Warnings

Emotions guide our senses and are physically felt by our body. At the same time, many people find it difficult to openly show their emotions. This creates in them a feeling of weakness, uncontrolledness or condemnation from others. If you are uncomfortable expressing emotions, try to learn this skill to build healthy relationships with people, live a fulfilling life, and even improve your mental and physical health.

Steps

Method 1 of 3: Understand your emotions

1. 1 Identify the reasons that force you to hide your emotions. There are probably a number of hidden reasons for this. Perhaps you grew up in an environment where the expression of emotions was discouraged, or you are used to suppressing strong emotions so you don't have to deal with them.
   • Try to recall possible tragic events in your life that you could not cope with. Are you afraid to talk about them? Understand why you are hiding your emotions: it will help you move on and learn to express them in the future.
2. 2 Explore basic emotions. There are six basic human emotions: joy, sadness, fear, anger, surprise, and disgust. It is necessary to understand how they feel from the inside and how to manifest them externally in order to correctly express your feelings.
   • Joy and surprise are positive emotions. Joy is felt with the whole body, it gives a sense of satisfaction and security. Surprise is usually perceived as a sudden shaking in the head and chest.
   • Negative emotions include anger, disgust, sadness, and fear. Anger is a wave of heat that travels from the shoulder blades through the neck and spreads down the back of the head. Disgust is mainly felt in the abdomen and often causes nausea. Sadness gives off physical pain in the chest and above. With fear, the pulse rises and sweating increases, and breathing becomes difficult.
3. 3 Understand how emotions influence decision making. Recent neurological research has confirmed that emotions guide decision-making. A person actually cannot define his attitude to a situation if he does not feel any emotion about the decision. Understand that emotion is closely related to decision making in order to develop an awareness of emotion and to apply that knowledge successfully.
   • For example, if you are intimidated by a decision you have to make at work, then recognize your bias and make a logical decision that is not dictated by fear.
4. 4 Take note of every emotion. Every time you feel something, stop and ask yourself, "What is this emotion?" If at a meeting with your boss you feel anxiety, then you should not suppress or ignore this emotion. Take a few seconds and understand exactly how you are feeling. Remember that your emotions are valid. They always have a concrete basis under them. Label the emotion as “sadness” or “joy,” and write that information down on paper or on your phone.
   • Continue to recognize emotions to make this process easier over time. Tell yourself, "I have the right to feel this way" and "I acknowledge this emotion."
5. 5 Take responsibility for your emotions. After acknowledging an emotion, acknowledge any consequences associated with it. By controlling your emotional responses, you can correct or change them in a positive way.
   • For example, if you feel sad and be rude to a loved one in response, then take that emotional response into your own hands. Apologize to a loved one and explain that you did this because you succumbed to emotions.
6. 6 Tell others about your emotions. If you already understand the terms, then start talking about your emotions with others. Carefully choose a loved one who is ready to listen to you, and tell him about the emotions you experienced during the day. Describe negative and positive emotions. Tell us how you dealt with them. In a conversation, you will be able to better understand the situation and look at it from the outside, you will feel relief.
   • If you are still not comfortable sharing your experiences with loved ones, then you can seek help from a psychotherapist. Talk to a professional if you think your loved one might be judgmental. In addition, the therapist will teach you how to correctly express emotions and establish the reasons that prevent you from talking about them to loved ones.
   • You don't need to feel ashamed or guilty about sharing your emotions with others or seeing a therapist. Learning to express emotions in a positive way will greatly improve your physical and mental health.

Method 2 of 3: Prepare to Express Your Emotions

1. 1 Watch drama movies and monitor your emotions. If you feel emotions, but do not know or do not understand how to express them, then follow the actors. Their job is to correctly express emotions. They exaggerate every emotion, so you can examine the outward manifestation of all emotions.
   • Good films in which actors express a rich range of emotions include The Notebook, Marley and Me, The Shawshank Redemption, Blood Diamond and The Pursuit of Happyness.
2. 2 Write down your emotional reactions. This will help you study them better. Indicate the feelings that arose in the body, as well as the external manifestations of each emotion. For example: "Today, after talking with my wife, I felt happy, so I smiled and hugged her."
   • Recording emotions and external reactions can be your study chart, which can be viewed when you find it difficult to express emotions.
3. 3 Predict how you will feel in the upcoming situations. Think about how you will react to future events, and also come up with alternative emotional reactions. For example, if you are about to go to a wedding, the anticipation of meeting new people can create feelings of dread or tension.Also think about other emotional reactions, including being happy for the newlyweds and the opportunity to meet new people.
   • Predicting future feelings will help prepare for those emotions. If you are ready for future emotional responses, then you will immediately recognize them.
4. 4 Empathize. Empathy is essential because it allows you to perceive the feelings and emotions of others. Learning to empathize with others can help you express your own emotions. Listen to people and make an effort to understand them deeper. Use your imagination to imagine what the person had to go through and how they felt.
   • Offer your help at a homeless shelter, nursing home or charity, and connect with people who have been through a lot. Watch how they express their emotions so that you can then use this knowledge to express their own feelings and emotions.
   • Read the book and imagine yourself as a character. Take a book that you have already read or are about to read. Pick one or two characters that you like and try to imagine yourself in their place. Imagine what they are going through and how they feel at such a moment.
5. 5 Practice showing emotions in front of the mirror. Stand in front of a mirror with a list of emotions, and practice matching facial expressions for each one. Examine how the muscles of the face, eyes, and mouth move with each expression of emotion. Try to find the right hand gestures.
   • For example, if you practice expressing surprise, open your eyes wide and cover your open mouth with your hand.

Method 3 of 3: Express your emotions in public

1. 1 Choose carefully with whom you will express your emotions. You don't have to show your emotions to everyone you talk to. It may be awkward or vulnerable at first, so choose a close friend or relative who will not judge you and will normally accept your attempts to change.
2. 2 Be very emotional in conversations with others. During conversations, deliberately exaggerate facial expressions, gestures, and emotional reactions. If you overdo it with your emotions, then over time you will be able to curb your emotional responses.
   • Such an exaggerated expression of emotions can give rise to awkwardness, but if you choose the right people, they will understand everything, and you will benefit from the situation invaluable.
   • Be careful about being overly expressive. Be sure to think about all your emotions and actions in advance. If you express anger too much, your attitude may be perceived as hostile or dangerous. Show emotions with an eye to the situation!
3. 3 Cry in sadness and laugh in joy. If emotions are associated with behavior, they will be perceived more sharply, even if such behavior is not a natural reaction. You can imitate crying when you are sad to heighten your emotion. As a result, you can really cry, or at least express your current emotion more vividly.
   • Emotions contain certain impulses (fear provokes a fight or flight response, and anger triggers a desire for retaliation) that are beyond your control. Don't suppress them. It is better to strengthen such impulses and find an external manifestation for them.
4. 4 Use physical contact. It also helps to express emotions. Physical touch can express emotion in a way that facial expression or voice color cannot. Recent research has shown that humans have an innate ability to interpret emotions through physical touch alone.
   • If the person gives you joy, then gently place your hand on his shoulder. In a moment of disgust, squeeze someone's hand.
   • Not all people accept physical touch, and if done incorrectly, it can be perceived as hostile.Pay attention to non-verbal cues that tell you the person's attitude toward physical touch, and also exercise moderation.
5. 5 Determine the appropriate level of emotion for each situation. Not every situation requires the expression of emotion (for example, a work meeting), but in some cases (a conversation with your significant other), a more intense emotional reaction is needed. Independently assess each individual situation to determine the acceptable level of expression of emotion.

Warnings

• If you are having trouble learning how to express or even feel emotions, seek professional help right away.