Go Ahead and Talk...Putting Feelings Into Words

By Drs. Fernette and Brock Eide

Here's a look at why it's often so crucial to put emotional experiences and perceptions into words. Researchers at UCLA found that adding a verbal label like scared or angry (a.k.a. affect labeling) to a view of a person's strong emotional expression significantly dampened the viewers' activation in the amygdala.



That's why many kids (and many grownups for that matter) who are grappling with extreme feelings like anger, fear, despair, feel a great breakthrough when they area able to verbalize their feelings and experiences. Even before the emotions have been fully understood or woven into a context, just being able to put a name to it calms the amygdala.