Feelings log

Our emotions are important to us. Just as sensations like hunger and thirst have evolved to help us to take action to regulate our body's needs, our emotions have evolved to help keep us safe and to connect us to other people. Whenever we feel a strong emotion, whether it's positive or negative, we can be sure that whatever we're perceiving must be important to us. Our emotions help guide our behaviour, for example when scared we might freeze, flee or fight. They also help us to communicate to other people, especially non-verbally through our body language.

Sometimes it can be hard to know exactly what we're feeling. We may never have developed the habit of listening to our emotions, or have got out of practice. A feelings log is a way to increase your emotional awareness by taking time to tune in to whatever you are feeling at a particular moment. The better you can identify and name feelings, the better you will: 1) know what is important to you; 2) make informed choices about how to behave in difficult or confusing situations; and, 3) know how to communicate clearly to other people.

There are a number of different ways to use this form. You could use it as a regular check-in, for example filling it in three times a day at roughly the same time, perhaps once in the morning, once in the middle of the day, and once in the evening. You could also use it to identify feelings before or after specific events, for example before going into a meeting or social situation that is important to you, or after leaving a situation that you have found challenging. You can also use it either to identify your strongest feeling at any one time, or, if you are aware that you have mixed feelings, to identify up to three emotions you are feeling at the same time. Simply click on the "new entry" button to choose a different emotion. Over time you will notice how it gets easier to become aware of what you are feeling and what that feeling means to you.