Overwhelming Emotions

The overwhelming emotional rollercoaster known as an abuse addiction can be a long ride for a person trying to get out of it on their own. But overcoming overwhelming emotion can lead to self-destruction, turning inward instead of outward, causing a huge binge, drinking oneself into a stupor or cutting oneself off from the world. In a way, all of the drama makes perfect sense: large, overwhelming emotions can feel very terrifying. But it s not just the overwhelming emotional content that is dangerous, it is how people choose to handle them that is so dangerous.


Many times, when a person is overwhelmed by overwhelming emotion, the logical thing to do is to try to numb the feeling with alcohol, drugs, food, sex or any number of other coping mechanisms. Unfortunately, these methods only provide temporary relief and can actually make things worse by numbing the brain with chemicals. As the emotional roller coaster continues, these chemicals seep into the body and can cause devastating health problems down the road.

When you find yourself overwhelmed by overwhelming emotion, it is important to acknowledge the feeling and then take the opposite action. For example, if you are feeling overwhelmed with grief, you don't want to run away and hide in your home. You want to go out and show your grief, to reach out to others, and to let them know about your feelings. When you ignore the feeling and try to numb it with alcohol, drugs, food, etc., you create a chemical imbalance in the brain that causes the emotional roller coaster to continue. It is this imbalance between the overwhelming emotion and the counteracting action that are most dangerous.

To really overcome emotional overwhelm, you need to get clear on what the problem is. The truth is that overwhelming emotions come from feelings of inadequacy, shame, guilt, fear, anxiety, etc. We all have these feelings and many of us experience them to varying degrees. However, there is one overriding feeling that should never be present and that is anger. If you are overwhelmed with emotions of anger, you will be able to recognize that you are in an emotional overload and you can turn your attention inward instead of trying to numb the pain.

Once you realize the negative impact of anger on the body, you can begin to neutralize it through the use of appropriate actions. If you feel overwhelmed with emotions of anger, you should acknowledge those feelings, release them, and look for the appropriate outlet. The key to nipping the emotion in the bud is to take the opposite action when you feel angry. Instead of becoming angry, find a constructive way to release your emotions so they do not build up and become overwhelming again.

In our case, we were previously emotionally overwhelmed by feelings of guilt for some perceived slight or wrongdoing committed by someone we loved. It was this feeling of guilt that lead us to a physical reaction of overeating. We consumed food became our new addiction because we believed that if we continued down this path that we would feel better and lose weight. Instead of gaining weight and getting better, we became over-dependent on food and became overwhelmed again when we felt depressed about the lack of progress. When we neutralized our negative emotions by taking the opposite action, we immediately eliminated the possibility of an emotional overwhelm.

Recognizing and releasing your negative emotions is the first step in neutralizing an emotional overload. This will prevent feelings of overwhelming emotions from coming back again. You can easily do this by intentionally thinking positive thoughts that will keep your emotions in check so that you do not get overloaded again.


Another way to neutralize an emotional overload is to engage in some form of emotional regulation. Emotional regulation is the process of regulating your emotions so you do not end up getting overwhelmed emotionally. Engaging in Emotional Regulation is similar to doing a breathing exercise in which you progressively increase the amount of air flow into your lungs until you become light headed. As your body increases its intake of oxygen, your heart rate increases and the amount of blood carried to your muscles increases. By engaging in this form of emotional regulation, you can neutralize the effects of overwhelming emotions.