Make a Healthier Plan to Process Your Feelings

 

Are Your Coping Habits Helping or Harming You?

By Gabrielle Shiozawa

Church Magazines

Remember you engaged in habits for a reason. You wouldn’t cling to bad habits if they weren’t serving you in some way, even if that “service” is a false sense of joy or security. For example, my perfectionistic tendencies used to help me avoid facing my fears about not meeting others’ expectations.

But when I let go of those expectations, I felt so much lighter! When you consciously recognize what problem you’re avoiding with your negative coping mechanisms, you can intentionally make a healthier plan to process your feelings.

Asking yourself these questions can help you become self-aware and respond differently:

• What need is this negative habit attempting to fulfill?

• What emotion is this habit helping me avoid?

• What’s a healthier option I can try in order to meet that need?