Facing the feelings that we're feeling scared to face

If we can learn to master our emotions then we'll be less inclined to eat junk.

If we can figure out ways to make ourselves happier, we'll be setting ourselves up for success.

All we ever hear as a kid is "stop crying," or "relax," or "calm down," or "everything will be alright!" when we're upset. But no one has ever really told us how to deal with complex emotions.

When our mind floods with emotions we might feel panicky or upset or anxious or angry. How about feelings like rage, loneliness, abandonment, shame? These feelings can be horrifying!

The challenge with feelings and thoughts is that we can't control them. There are a lot of books that suggest that we 'let go of our ego' so we can stop thinking.

That is very, very difficult to do.

The reality is I can't control my thoughts. They just pop into my head. As do my feelings.

Howeva! I can, you can, we all can!, control how we react to our thoughts and our feelings, if we choose to.

Let's say we're all going to a gorgeous island together. How would we prepare?

Ah, there's the key. We'd all prepare, right?

And that's all we can do in our case. We can prepare ourselves for when we're sad, anxious, unhappy, etc. What if we had a secret stash of things to do, or look at, or read or listen to, or people to call when certain feelings arise?

The idea here is to figure out ways to deal with our emotions - besides, using food.

Is this possible? Of course it is!

Why? Because the monster is never as scary as it seems.

Like clouds, and weather, and so many other things in our lives, feelings and emotions pass. We must remember this.

But we must prepare ourselves.

-Adam