We've all been there before. That feeling of numbness, emptiness, and just not caring about anything. It can be incredibly frustrating and overwhelming when we feel this way for extended periods of time, but we often push through it because that's what we're "supposed" to do. We think that if we just ignore our emotions long enough, they'll eventually go away. Unfortunately, this isn't the case. In fact, numbing our emotions can actually lead to bigger problems down the road. In this blog post, we will discuss why numbing emotions may be ruining your life - and how you can have neutral thoughts instead!

When we numb our emotions, it's like we're putting a bandaid on a wound. It may seem like the right thing to do in the moment, but it's actually doing more harm than good. By numbing our emotions, we're not allowing ourselves to feel anything - and over time, this can lead to bigger problems.

What is Numbing?

Numbing is the process of avoiding or suppressing our emotions. We often do this by distracting ourselves with things like food, alcohol, work, etc. We think that if we just ignore our emotions long enough, they'll eventually go away. Unfortunately, this isn't the case.

The Dangers of Numbing

When we numb our emotions, it's not just a short-term fix - it can actually lead to bigger problems down the road:

• We become disconnected from our feelings and thoughts.

• We lose touch with who we are and what we want in life.

• We stop caring about others and ourselves.

• We become more reactive and less responsive

How to Recognize if we are Numbing our Emotions

There are a few ways to recognize if we're numbing our emotions:

• We're constantly distracting ourselves with things like food, alcohol, work, etc.

• We feel numb or empty inside.

• We don't care about anything and we're not interested in anything.

• We become more reactive and less responsive.

• We are 'spacing out'

• We start to say "I don't care" more frequently

What are Neutral Thoughts?

Neutral thoughts are thoughts that don't have any negative or positive charge to them. They aren't good or bad, just neutral. Neutral thoughts include things like: "I feel numb" or "My head hurts". The main difference between numb emotions and neutral thoughts is that numb emotions are caused by an attempt at numbing our feelings while neutral thoughts happen naturally without trying to numb anything out of existence!

We can think of having a neutral thought as being in the present moment with an open mind. It's not about resisting our feelings but rather allowing ourselves time to process what we're feeling before acting on it (or reacting). This can be difficult because when we feel something strongly enough, it's hard not to act immediately. But if we give ourselves that space between feeling and acting, it gives us time for reflection so that our actions are more intentional instead of reactive.

How to Have Neutral Thoughts Instead

The best way to have neutral thoughts instead of numbing our emotions is by mindfulness. Mindfulness is the practice of being present in the moment and paying attention to what's going on around us.

Here are a few tips for how to be more mindful:

1. Be aware of your thoughts and feelings. Acknowledge them, but don't judge them. Recognize the resistance your body has to the feeling (it doesn't like to be uncomfortable, remember!), and lean into it. Just as waves in the ocean rise and fall, so too do emotions.

2. Remember that your ideas are nothing more than opinions. Examine the content of your thoughts carefully and remove the emotional aspect. Then rewrite them. For example: "I'm not good enough" becomes, "Some people think I'm not good enough". Another example: "I'm so overwhelmed" becomes, "There is a lot on my to-do list that my brain is looking at all at once."

3. Sit with the thought. Allow it to be there without reacting or fighting against it. Try to see if you can sit with the thought for five minutes without reacting in any way (even if that means getting up and doing something else).

4. Try meditating by focusing on your breathing. Notice how it feels as air enters through your nose and fills up inside you, then leaves again when you breathe out. Let go of all thoughts about what happened today or tomorrow - just focus on this moment right now!

In Conclusion

Numbing emotions can lead to bigger problems down the road, but you don't have to numb your emotions! You can numb them out by having neutral thoughts instead which will allow you get in touch with what's really going on inside yourself without trying to make anything go away or numb anything out of existence. This can be difficult at first because when we feel something strongly enough it's hard not to act immediately (or react) but if we give ourselves time between feeling and acting then this gives us an opportunity for reflection so our actions are more intentional than reactive.