Dealing with emotional sensitivity

Do you react extremely negatively when someone makes a passing comment about you, whether it’s about your hairstyle, a silly mistake you made, your manners, or your lifestyle as a whole?

If the answer is ''yes'', then the is no need for you to worry.

Actually, being sensitive is good as it is part of emotional intelligence, but too much of this sensitivity, isn’t great. Here’s how you can keep your emotions in check by turning your oversensitivity down a notch or two.

Figure out what makes you sensitive

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Did you feel prickles of sensitivity when someone pointed out a mistake you made? Maybe you felt slightly offended that someone assumed you were ignorant about something. Now that you’ve figured out what’s bothering you, you can move on to fixing it.

Don’t be too hard on yourself

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Remember, being sensitive is a good thing as it means you’re compassionate and empathetic to other people’s situations. Yours is just a little over the bar, verging on oversensitivity. This can affect your mental well-being, especially if you take things too personally and dwell on them for long periods.

However, before you start beating yourself up by saying how much of a crybaby you are, stop yourself. Focusing on negative labels will only put the spotlight on these traits, which can be problematic. Instead, immerse yourself in positive thoughts.

Limit overthinking

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Do you overthink situations and comments, obsessing over the slightest action or words? Why do you even let your thoughts run into overdrive and fantasize about things that didn’t even happen?

Avoid making mountains out of molehills as you’ll find it difficult to be productive and calm. Yes, reflecting on the consequences of your actions is wise, but constantly gnawing away at it will not do you any good.

Think before you react

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Before you jump to conclusions and get on the defensive, take a mental step back and think before you react. When you immediately assume something about a person’s intentions or behavior, you’re filtering it negatively without any facts or evidence to support your hypothesis.

For example, your best friend doesn’t reply to your text about catching a movie over the weekend. Your emotions run high and you think she’s too busy spending time with her new college friends, resulting in you acting cold towards her and ultimately losing the friendship. By reacting in that way, you have overblown the situation unnecessarily. So, always think before you react.

It’s not all about you

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Realistically, most people are too busy thinking about their own struggles and problems, which means they frankly aren’t thinking of you at all. Instead of automatically reacting to their behavior, have a think about what they are feeling instead. Remember, you aren’t the leading character in everyone’s life.

Be patient

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It takes time to become less oversensitive, so don’t take it to heart if you still feel prickles of sensitivity every so often. You’ll learn how to manage your feelings in due time. Also, think of how this learning process will greatly help you as you get older and experience more emotionally challenging situations. Patience is a major factor when it comes to improving yourself.