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Jun
23
Naming Feelings with Mindfulness Reduces Painful Emotions
June 23, 2009 | Leave a Comment
Posted by: k daniel
Do you know why people say you should “be here now,” or what “living in the present” really means – or why it’s good for you? This study provides some clues. Previous studies have shown that pictures of threatening information, like an angry face, activates a region of the brain called the amygdala, which serves as an alarm to protect the body in case of danger. Labeling the threat, however, activates a second region of the brain, the right ventrolateral prefrontal cortex, and reduces the amygdala response. In other words, staying present in the moment with the feeling and naming it, i.e. ‘that’s anger’ turns down the alarm response that triggers the negative feelings. Now, you may know that a common practice to help you stay in the present is mindfulness meditation.
One technique of mindfulness is to pay attention to your moment to moment experiences, whether to the running mental commentary in your head, or a reaction to an event, and to label how you feel at that moment. You may say, “I’m feeling angry right now”, or “I’m stressed” or “This is joy.” An important aspect of the practice is withholding judgment or reacting to your feeling, you simply become aware of the feeling, label it, and “let it go.”
Being mindful brings all sorts of prefrontal resources to turn down the amygdala’s anxiety response. Being present with the negative or threatening feelings by putting them into words puts the brakes on your emotional responses, so you feel less angry, or less sad, or less frightened.
Putting feelings into words also helps us heal. Health benefits including reducing chronic pain conditions, skin diseases and stress-related symptoms – consistent with what mindfulness meditation teachers have taught for thousands of years about the value of being here now.
Journaling about painful feelings, or talking about them makes people feel better – apart from any insights they may experience in the process.
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