Addicted by Matt Noffs

Author:Matt Noffs
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 2018-04-27T16:00:00+00:00

‘WHY CAN I NEVER GET MY EMOTIONS IN CHECK?’

One of the biggest challenges for trauma survivors is affect, or emotional regulation. As we’ve discussed, all of us are presented with a plethora of stimuli each and every moment of each and every day. These stimuli enter our lives through our senses, then make their way to our brains, where we add meaning and eventually feel an emotional response.

The process of understanding emotions, including emotions attached to memories, is in part due to the joint effort of the amygdala and the prefrontal cortex, in particular the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (where emotions are registered).99 The amygdala is responsible for processing emotions and deciding which emotions to store as memories. This could include positive memories (a surprise birthday party with family and friends), or intensely negative emotions (a car accident or serious assault). The anterior cingulate (which lives below the frontal cortex) also plays a role in integrating thoughts with emotions, as well as modulating bodily arousal.100

It is our job as social beings to regulate our emotional responses to events, in order to fit into the various social worlds we inhabit in our everyday lives. It would be socially unacceptable most of the time for us to react mindlessly to every emotion that happens to cross our consciousness.

Picture this:

You are sitting at home with your partner or housemate. You are watching TV, not particularly interested in the program on the screen, just relaxing and zoning out. Then, out of nowhere, you are reminded of today’s date, and you remember you have an overdue power bill due yesterday. The bill specified that if the amount isn’t paid by the due date, a further late fee and disconnection could be likely. So suddenly (and to the surprise of the oblivious person sitting beside you), you shout, ‘Shit, I forgot to pay the power bill!’

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