Emotional Growth: Is Emotional Growth Important?

In today’s world it is not uncommon for someone to hear that exercise is vital when it comes to leading a happier, healthier and even a longer life. So if one takes part in some form of exercise a few times a week, then their life will change for the better.

And it doesn’t take a genius to realise that regular exercise is going to enhance ones experience of life. Along with this will be a good diet; to make sure that one gets the right nutrients into their body.

These are two things that human beings have always had to do, but awareness has recently increased due to people’s health and physical condition becoming progressively worse as time has passed. And as things have got so bad, exercising and eating well has become essential.

As the years have gone by in the western world, life has become more sedentary. Through the use of technology, certain things have become easier and requite less effort. Many, many years ago for example, humans had to hunt for food and exercise was part of this process. But now, food can be brought, so this removes the physical side of the equation.

The Physical Body

So as we have a physical body, engaging in some kind of exercise is important and so is eating the right food to fuel the body. However, to say that exercise alone or exercise with the right nutrition is enough to lead a happy and fulfilling life is an oversight.

There are often sports stars in the media, people who are in peak condition, who are suffering from depression or something similar. This shows that being happy and eating well is not necessarily enough. Even though that is what the media typically churns out and what a lot of people come to conclude as the truth.

The Intellect

Another area that one can develop and work on is their intellect. And this is something that generally gets developed in the west, that’s not to say that every does this to a high degree, just that the option is there.

So even though one might not go too far with this area or have the intention to increase their intellectual capabilities, they are likely to have been exposed to a certain degree of education or information from the moment they are born.

And education is obviously paramount when it comes to moving away from ignorance and to empower individuals, as well as a society as a whole. Freedom can come about through people having the right information, just as enslavement can come about through people having the wrong information.

The Limit

But the intellect can only get one so far and it won’t always lead to someone becoming happier and fulfilled. An over developed intellect can often be a consequence of one suffering emotionally.

In some cases, people who are incredibly bright suffer when it comes to relationships. This can be because their intellectual development has overtaken their emotional development, and as emotions are a vital part of relationships, they are out of their depth.

So having a well developed intellect is incredibly important, but it is not everything and it is not meant to replace emotional development. One can be very bright and be able to think themselves out of most challenges, but they could still suffer emotionally. Logic or thinking rationally is only going to get one so far is they are overwhelmed by emotions or are carry a lot of emotional baggage for instance.

Emotional Growth

When the media talks about what it takes to experience wellbeing, emotions are often nowhere to be seen. And this plays a big part in keeping emotions of the fringe of life and as something that can be overlooked without too much trouble.

However, there are people in the world who are emotionally together and they are not majorly intellectual or obsessed when it comes to exercise. But this doesn’t mean that they are therefore living a mediocre life.

They can have relationships that are deep and fulfilling and feel fulfilled and happy in life. Through being in touch with their emotions, building relationships is going to be easier than if they were emotionally dead, but intellectually advanced.

And when one is not emotionally stable and at ease, there is often the need to do more and just being becomes a lot harder. Forming relationships with no emotional awareness is going to be a real challenge.  In fact, if one is suffering emotionally, it can be hard to enjoy life no matter what their physical shape is or how intelligent they are.

Individual Responsibility

But in most cases, unless one forms a healthy relationship with their emotions during childhood or takes matters into their own hands as an adult, they never will. The education system doesn’t teach people how they work or on how to deal with them.

And once one is in the ‘real world’ they are unlikely to receive any guidance. Society doesn’t show people how to deal with them directly, what they do is show people how to avoid them; with their being many options available. 

To Be Heard

And when emotions are not dealt with, they can end up building up in one’s body and this can cause one to be emotionally stuck. These emotions that are causing so much pain and confusion could have been stuck in one’s body since they were a baby and a child, as well as having built up over their adult years. What they often need is to be heard and not to be covered up or avoided.

When they are faced, heard and released, one can begin to feel lot lighter and more at ease with themselves and to form a healthier relationship with their emotional nature. And as we are emotional beings, this is not mean to be an additional thing or a bonus area of life, but a relationship that is healthy and functional for all of us. One that is as important as eating, drinking, exercising and educating the mind.

Awareness

If one feels that they are emotionally unstable or stuck and that their intellectual development has exceeded their emotional growth, then it could be due to trapped emotions in their body.

And these can be released with the assistance of a therapist or a healer who allows one to face them and gradually release them. 

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Oliver J R Cooper 
http://www.oliverjrcooper.co.uk/