Say It Louder: Take charge of your happiness

Opinion editor Emma Crampton shares her thoughts on various topics in her weekly column.

Christi Lazutkin

Opinion editor Emma Crampton shares her thoughts on various topics in her weekly column.

It’s crazy to me how one thing, one second of our lives, can completely impact the way we feel. For instance, you can be having the time of of your life and then hear sad news that completely alters your mood in just seconds. While at times it seems impossible, I believe there are ways you can take charge in how positive your emotions are as well.

To begin this process you must first determine what the problem is, as in why you are not happy. What can you change about yourself or your surroundings that will improve your emotions? Next, we must allow ourselves to feel the negative emotions fully. This, at times, can be the most difficult part. It feels uncomfortable to feel them to their full potential, so we choose to ignore and avoid them.

The problem with this is the more we run away from our feelings, the more they will accumulate. We instead find other things to rely our emotional dependency on to temporarily hide the pain. Common things of this sort are drugs, alcohol, sex, partying, attention, etc.

However, because we did not fully feel the emotion, it will continue to grow, and eventually the thing we chose to depend on will stop working. Then, most people just find another false security and continue this until they have nothing left. To start the recovery process, all you have to do is begin to feel your emotions and release them.

By allowing yourself to feel your negative emotions, you are accepting the fact that you are not happy. While this seems like a simple thing to do, it truly determines whether or not you can take charge in your emotions.