Can someone make you feel the way you do? If you answered yes, you might be among the general consensus in that belief. The fact of the matter is that only YOU have the power to control how you feel. Now, you might be shaking your head in disagreement so we will take the next few minutes to break this down. Are you ready?
When we interact with others by engaging in daily activities and/or communications such as family, friends, coworkers, etc., we feel. This means, we feel an emotional response to the situation or topic of as it is presented and/or experienced. We may feel things such as empathy, curiosity, joy or go as far as to feel anger or hurt. How we feel in these situations reflects our personal criticisms or the compiling information in order to take action. Here is an example, if someone were to tell you that they do not like your particular taste in music, favorite food, or choice of clothing for the day, how would you feel? How about being the person not invited to the party? Or being told that your sibling is better than you in sports?
Even when someone deliberately attempts to disrupt your emotions, you control the outcome of how your respond. You make the conscious choice to respond how you choose through your words and actions. Whether that is with hurt, disgust, pity, joy, laughter, or even indifference. There is no one that can make that conscious choice, except you. Knowing this is not always as simple as it seems.
So now you might be asking, “How do I take back my power?”. Well, you must understand that to own your feelings is to understand your boundaries. These boundaries are an important factor in self love and understanding as they are meant to delineate the lines between you and the other person(s) involved. There are several ways you can begin to own your feelings and take control of your power below. These are helpful tools in learning to cope and establishing positive mental health practices.
