Emotional Dysregulation
Emotional dysregulation can leave you feeling as though your emotions become intense very quickly or take a long time to settle. You may understand logically that a situation is manageable, yet still find yourself feeling completely overwhelmed, angry, anxious, hurt, or shut down.
At times, it can feel as though your emotions are in control rather than something you can move through.
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Emotional dysregulation can look different for everyone. You may notice:
Experiencing emotions very intensely
Going from feeling okay to overwhelmed very quickly
Struggling to calm down once you become upset
Reacting strongly and regretting it afterwards
Feeling easily triggered by conflict, criticism, or rejection
Becoming angry, anxious, or distressed in ways that feel difficult to control
Shutting down, disconnecting, or feeling emotionally numb
Feeling ashamed or critical of yourself after emotional reactions
Struggling to identify or explain what you are feeling
Feeling exhausted by the intensity of your emotions
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The ability to understand and regulate emotions develops through our relationships and experiences.
If your emotions were dismissed, criticised, ignored, or felt unsafe to express, you may not have had the opportunity to learn how to recognise and move through difficult feelings with support.
At other times, prolonged stress, trauma, neurodivergence, or repeated experiences of emotional overwhelm can leave your nervous system more sensitive to perceived threat. Your reactions may feel disproportionate in the moment, but often make more sense when we understand what your mind and body are responding to.
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Therapy can help you better understand your emotions, recognise triggers, and develop a greater capacity to stay with difficult feelings without becoming completely overwhelmed by them.
Our psychologists can support you to develop practical emotion regulation skills while also exploring the experiences and patterns that may sit underneath intense emotional responses.
The goal is not to stop feeling deeply, but to help emotions feel more understandable and manageable.
Taking the next step
Feeling emotions intensely can be exhausting, particularly when you are also judging yourself for how you react.
Our psychologists can help you make sense of your emotional responses and develop ways of navigating difficult feelings with greater understanding, flexibility, and control.