#13: 10 Common Myths About Emotions

September 18, 2019

Today Marielle and Ed discuss the 10 most common myths about emotions. These myths can come from the culture around us and from the families we were raised in. Asking yourself where you learned some of these myths may be helpful in debunking them. Some myths have to do with a fear of being out of control with emotions and other myths are more about equating emotions with the truth of who you are. Listen in for an in-depth look at 10 common myths about emotions!

Show Highlights:

Myth 1: Having strong emotions means I am out of control.

Feeling the emotion and the behavior get conflated
It can feel like strong emotion automatically equals out of control behavior
Intense emotion can be very physical
Taking action on our strong emotion makes it feel out of control

Myth 2: If I start crying, I’m never gonna stop.

We always start crying, often sooner than we think
Under all circumstances, we do eventually stop crying

Myth 3: I need to push down my anger or it will become dangerous.

Anger also has a life-span, if we let it move through us it will dissipate
We can feel angry and not act on it in a dangerous way
We have a lot of power over how to handle our own anger

Myth 4: If I am feeling very emotional, I must do something to change it.

Emotions give us information
We don’t necessarily need to change emotions

Myth 5: Reason is better than emotion.

Or it’s always better to be rational than emotional
Sometimes it sounds appealing to not have emotions
Emotions connect us to others

Myth 6: Emotions can just happen for no reason.

Emotions are a response to something even if we don’t know what that is
If you’re having a strong emotional response, it’s a signal to do a little exploring

Myth 7: I am my emotions.

We are so much more than our emotions
It’s not uncommon to feel more than one emotion at once
If you are basing your identity on your emotions, it will be hard to have a stable sense of self

Myth 8: It’s inauthentic to try to change or question my emotions.

Sometimes it’s not effective to feel or act on an emotion
Sometimes our emotions are not aligned with our goals or values so the most authentic thing to do is to work to change
Our emotions don’t always fit the facts

Myth 9: My emotions speak the absolute truth.

Sometimes our strong emotions are based on interpretations or assumptions rather than actual facts
Just because you feel something doesn’t mean it’s true

Myth 10: I need to be very emotional to be creative.

Emotions help support creativity but we don’t have to be overwhelmed by emotions to be creative

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