What’s New & Noteworthy at Media Power Youth
Understanding and Managing Emotions
By Casey Schmidl-Gagne, MPY Summer Media Camp Educator
Emotions are a tricky topic to talk about with kids. Positive, negative, and everything in between – emotions are a spectrum of feelings, mindsets, and physical reactions. Some of them are simpler to understand and manage, while some can feel incredibly difficult to even talk about. Let’s de-mystify the way emotions work, and work through some solutions that might help kids handle them.
Researchers widely agree that people, across borders and cultures, have some major, “simple” emotions. You might recognize them from Inside Out – joy, sadness, anger, fear, disgust, and surprise. In different places, they might be called different things or valued differently, but studies on even the most isolated people on the planet showed that they feel these, and many other emotions. These “other” emotions are considered “complex”, and involve blends of the core emotions – just like how blending two colors makes a whole new one. Complex emotions like anxiety, nostalgia, wonder, and contentment are also considered “universal”. The current theory is that humans evolved to have these specific emotions, in order to keep us healthy and safe.
To understand emotions better, it helps to understand why they happen. Emotions are reactions in response to something around us. When someone sees a bundle of balloons, it sparks joy! When someone cuts ahead in a line, it ignites anger. These reactions are understandable, and natural to feel. With those emotional reactions comes physical ones – anger increases body tension, joy rewires brains, sadness causes tears… which helps ease sadness. The “fight-or-flight” instinct is a well-known example of a physical response occurring alongside an emotional one!
When engaging with youth who are struggling with managing emotions, it can seem like navigating a dark forest without a map. The first step is figuring out how to properly communicate about the issue. Someone who’s struggling may not be looking for solutions right away, so approaching from a place of comfort and support helps. If they’re open to suggestions and more direct assistance, there’s a few well known coping methods that help a lot of people: some light exercise, meditation, or even just a fun hobby might help ease the burden of overwhelming emotions. Re-framing “negative” emotions like anxiety as tools rather than threats can also help make things more approachable and comfortable. Different methods work for different people, so encourage them to try different approaches!
For parents, teachers, and even older siblings, it’s important to be mindful of how you handle emotions. The ways we – as role models – react to situations impacts others, including any kids or young adults around us. They might learn coping strategies and copy them, which is great if they work, but less so if they don’t. In some cases, a mismatch in what works for two different people can actually make things worse. Just like with helping, communication and honesty count when it comes to handling emotions and strategies. Leading by example, talking about feelings, and demonstrating healthy coping mechanisms can make a world of difference in how the youth around you handle their own.