Unwanted emotions can be incredibly intense, often leading us to view them as threats. When they surge, the physical symptoms can feel overwhelming, prompting us to resist and fight against them.

This reaction is rooted in our primal instinct to avoid what feels bad. Even a single-celled amoeba knows to dart away from harmful stimuli. With this in mind, it’s easy to see how our unwanted emotions could be misinterpreted as threats.

However, when we break down why emotions feel so painful, we can begin to view them with greater objectivity.

There is a crucial reason why some emotions feel so unpleasant: they are designed to be warning signals. Just like a fire alarm must be loud and jarring to ensure we react to a fire, our emotions must be uncomfortable to grab our attention. If a fire alarm sounded like ambient elevator music, no one would leave the burning building.

Since emotions are bodily signals, they function much like hunger or pain. Hunger makes it nearly........

© Psychology Today