𝘐'𝘷𝘦 𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘑𝘢𝘴𝘰𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘩𝘪𝘮 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘥𝘰 𝘢 𝘭𝘰𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘦𝘯𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨. 𝘐'𝘷𝘦 𝘰𝘣𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘷𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘪𝘴 𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘶𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦. 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘴𝘰 𝘲𝘶𝘪𝘤𝘬 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘢𝘭𝘬 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘭𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘶𝘯𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭 𝘢𝘯𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘣𝘢𝘥𝘭𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬. 𝘏𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘯𝘰 𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘧 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬𝘴 𝘪𝘴 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘦. - age 14
1/
This was the start of a very complicated idea that took me years to work out.
I don't think I began focusing on really taking this apart until well into my college years.
I was a sophomore in college when I first started transcribing my childhood journals into digital and I ended up really reading them seriously for the first time and discovering these amazing nuggets of wisdom that I started really developing into theories and understandings about the world.
This one was complex.
2/
In my #MediaTherapy class I talk about how media triggers feelings BEFORE it triggers thoughts which helps people understand this point more easily.
Triggers are emotional landmines that rarely involve any thinking ... they are knee jerk reactions that stem from an emotional dysregulation. (They are also warning systems from the gut i.e. gut instinct)
People don't think about their triggers, they are controlled by them and then they respond THROUGH them. No thought is involved at all.
4/
Thinking is not usually a emotional or triggered action. It is something done purposefully and for a specific reason usually in a controlled state.
Most people can't think WHILE they feel and this is usually because of dysregulation.
Such people are incapable of thinking and feeling at the same time. Thinking is only possible for these people when they have calmed down and have control over their emotions.
Thinking, for most people, follows emotional states. For stoics it's the opposite.
5/
Many people confuse thoughts and feelings which you wouldn't imagine would be a thing but it is.
Thoughts and feelings aren't the same.
Thoughts are cognitive processes that happen in the mind and are designed to help us make sense of the world. Feelings are emotional processes that usually begin in the body and represent responses we have to the world.
Emotions ARE chemical yes but remember that the GUT (enteric) controls a good portion of your brain. Bad gut, bad brain and vice versa.
3/