Have you ever had an impulsive feeling for something that you couldn’t quite explain, and in your mind you see no other option but to have that thing? Almost as if you feel something terrible will happen if you don’t get it/do it, etc? I remember feeling it especially strong as a child around Christmas time.
The most common instance I feel it now, is when I need to make a trip to the post office (which is frequently). For some reason, I feel, like I have to go to the post office as soon as possible, but when in reality I can wait a few days. I have also felt the same impression when I am hungry for certain types of foods; somewhere it becomes an emotional issue.
I think if we regularly eat in an emotional way, we will be eating for the wrong reasons.
There was an article recently about a scientist who made bowls that had undetectable soup lines built into them that would slowly refill as his subjects were eating. 74% of them over ate, and he concluded that most people do not stop eating when they are full, but rather based on what they see. Think about that, most of the time we are judging our sense of hunger by seeing the food “disappear”- such as an empty bowl. If it doesn’t disappear when we think it should…we believe ourselves to still be hungry.
Humans tend to make nearly all their decisions based on emotions. True we may “calculate” something out, but even then, the calculation “feels” good. I don’t think emotions are a great way to make decisions- ask any inmate in a prison. Still we all do it.
What am I getting to?
I’ve learned that when I feel this emotional, impulsive feeling for something, I can sit down and talk myself out of it. The best way, is to project the consequences in not getting it and realize you can live fine without it. It is strange to talk yourself out of emotion- yet also quite useful if you know you can do it.
Please tell me if you have ever noticed this is your own life…an impulsive desire for something, that gives you the impression you cant live without it, when in reality…..its an illusion.
Have you ever had an impulsive feeling for something that you couldn’t quite explain, and in your mind you see no other option but to have that thing? Almost as if you feel something terrible will happen if you don’t get it/do it, etc? I remember feeling it especially strong as a child around Christmas time.
The most common instance I feel it now, is when I need to make a trip to the post office (which is frequently). For some reason, I feel, like I have to go to the post office as soon as possible, but when in reality I can wait a few days. I have also felt the same impression when I am hungry for certain types of foods; somewhere it becomes an emotional issue.
I think if we regularly eat in an emotional way, we will be eating for the wrong reasons.
There was an article recently about a scientist who made bowls that had undetectable soup lines built into them that would slowly refill as his subjects were eating. 74% of them over ate, and he concluded that most people do not stop eating when they are full, but rather based on what they see. Think about that, most of the time we are judging our sense of hunger by seeing the food “disappear”- such as an empty bowl. If it doesn’t disappear when we think it should…we believe ourselves to still be hungry.
Humans tend to make nearly all their decisions based on emotions. True we may “calculate” something out, but even then, the calculation “feels” good. I don’t think emotions are a great way to make decisions- ask any inmate in a prison. Still we all do it.
What am I getting to?
I’ve learned that when I feel this emotional, impulsive feeling for something, I can sit down and talk myself out of it. The best way, is to project the consequences in not getting it and realize you can live fine without it. It is strange to talk yourself out of emotion- yet also quite useful if you know you can do it.
Please tell me if you have ever noticed this is your own life…an impulsive desire for something, that gives you the impression you cant live without it, when in reality…..its an illusion.
Well, the trick seems to be knowing when to follow your emotions/instincts, and when not to. Emotions can serve us well, and I think there is a reason we have them. It’s the knowing when to follow and emotion and when not to… have you figured out the answer to that?
Well, I think there is a difference between emotion and instinct. Instinct is vibe you can get, without feeling a sense of emotion. I believe that the actual formulation of our decision making process should be as logical as possible. Decisions based completely on emotion seem to have potential to be misguided, ask any prison inmate. I have learned though, that the two can work together, for example photography. Logically, its a great thing fit for me and it was very difficult for me to quit school, but once I made that choice, its easy for me to get emotional about it because I love it so much. For me, my emotions play a powerful creative role when I attach them to decisions Ive made with logic. The same goes with love…a person can love someone who is a bad match, or love someone who is a perfect fit, if they are both there its a great thing. In science we would call this "required but insufficent" meaning, you need it but in and of itself, emotion is not enough.
Well said. In fact after I wrote my comment I wondered if you were implying that following emotion was bad in all cases, and in fact I thought that photography is all about capturing emotions… and it would be an oxymoron for you to feel that way 🙂
I guess my problem has been distinguishing between a vibe/intuition and emotion… I think I understand it more as my life goes on… but who knows!
For me a vibe is very unemotional, almost like a hunch, you sense something, but not with one of the 5 senses. Its something you cannot explain or describe, but it also doesnt change your mood.
Emotions are mood changing.
I think life is at its best when both your mind (logic) and heart (emotion) are on the same page.
ok- I see what you’re saying. I think I have experienced that. I think maybe then the hunch or vibe that you feel then elicits a feeling of a certain emotion down the road. For instance, if it is a vibe about something good or positive, you end up feeling joy or happiness???
I love this topic and the thoughts that have gone on to the comments. A friend of mine were just having this same type of conversation yesterday. How do you tell the emotional side to turn off when that side has been making the decisions for so long and at what point is the emotional side get to continue to make the choices?
ok, another thought… how do you differentiate emotional decisions from spiriutal/God driven decisions… they are so intertwined sometimes!!
Eva: Here is a piece of info: Emotions are always preceded by a thought. Catch the tought, and you catch the emotion. The reason we do not recongnize the thought coming first, is because often the thought is coming up from the subconscious. Emotions are like trails following thoughts.
I can relate to your need to visit the post office. I daily feel the need to de-clutter my mind by finishing up the last thing on my "mental check list" regaurdless if that thing could be done on another day. I feel like it free’s my "chee"(qi) to flow :)Sometimes we crave certain foods for a reason. Maybe we crave a hamburger because our body really needs the protein in the burger to repair muscle. About ten years ago I bought a brand new car because I just had to have it. I remember the stress I experienced after the initial novelty of having it wore off. The payments were quite high! I know now that going out and buying the new vehicle I want isn’t going to bring me lasting happiness based on prior experience. But I can’t say the desire to have it isn’t still there.
so true! I think you get me Tammy!