Name it to Tame it!

I’m currently planning wellbeing-based lessons for kids coming back to school, after months of isolation and uncertainty, amidst an ongoing pandemic.

I mean, I love it. But it’s taking some thinking about!

One of the suggestions that I’ve come across in my research, is the importance of teaching kids to name their emotions, which I just so happen to have been working on myself specifically in meditation practice but also generally throughout the day.

I’ve actually downloaded and laminated (#selfhelpgeek) a copy of ‘The Feelings Wheel,’ courtesy of the Gottman Institute. I have one in my office and one of the fridge, aimed at curbing emotional eating. Get yours here.

I know you might scoff at this, i.e. ‘surely you know what you’re feeling?’
but actually, look at this thing. See how many feelings there are!

And whilst many of them feel very similar, a subtle difference might actually be huge in terms of what it means to you.

Guilt and shame might feel very similar, for example, but they mean very different things, have very different route causes and very likely require very different approaches to problem-solving.  

Still not convinced? According to Dr. Dan Siegel, neuroscientists can actually see the moment when name your feeling; when the prefrontal cortex sends soothing neurons towards that oh-so-emotional limbic system, reconnecting the thinking and feeling parts of the brain before they head into fight, flight or freeze.

“Name it to tame it,” says Dr. Dan Siegel, which kinda says it all. #stealingit