The new year is a good time to check in on your emotional wellbeing and maybe incorporate a few new ways to handle what life throws at you.
We have advice from the experts at Regence BlueCross BlueShield of Utah to help you get started.
Allie Henderson, a Wellbeing Consultant with Regence, says naming your emotions immediately starts to regulate your physiological response.
"And once you know the emotion that you're feeling, then you can move into some healthy sustainable coping mechanisms," she says.
Allie says many turn for distraction from their feelings by scrolling through social media or emotional eating, but she reminds us that won't solve your problem.
She suggests to ask yourself what am I feeling right now, why am I feeling this way and what do I need?
Allie says then you can turn to coping mechanisms that can really help, and don't feel like you always have to be happy.
She says, "There are no such thing as good or bad emotions. All emotions are information and they're trying to tell us something."
Suppresssing those feelings can have harmful effects on your health.
So the next time someone asks you, "How are you", maybe think about how you're really doing and answer honestly.
Don't be afraid to reach out for help if you're strugging.
