It’s the only way out when the inner machine is racing.
It is about avoiding external stimuli in order to be able to cope with the situation that has upset us. “Emotivity is first of all physiological, recalls Saverio Tomasella. It is therefore difficult to recognize and name the emotion oneself.” Take an interest in the circuit it takes in the brain, pay attention to it to not feel helpless and reduce its emotivity.
Catherine Aimelet-Perissol recommends “taking an interest in the functioning and mechanisms of the brain. It is an extraordinary tool for self-knowledge that can reconcile us with our emotions. The latter are above all caused by our immune system. Knowing how to identify and map them helps us and reassures us when we are invaded by them: as with a GPS, it gives us landmarks to better orient ourselves”.
Antoine Pelissolo advises observing the moment when the emotion arises: what exactly is going on inside you? Under what circumstances does this happen? It’s about trying to take some distance. “When we have identified the causes, we realize that this phenomenon does not come out of nowhere, but that it corresponds to something that happened in oneself. The goal is to find means of self-soothing, to correct the excess by yourself, avoiding adding oil to the fire.”