Emotional Sensitivity: Causes and Effective Ways To Overcome

Last Update on March 10, 2023 : Published on March 11, 2023
overcome-Emotional-sensitivity

Emotions are a huge part of our life and well-being. No one on this planet exists without any emotions. The kind of emotions you have and the way you choose to express or suppress them makes each one of us different from the others.

Some people have a strong hold over their emotions and hardly let their emotions govern them. Whereas there are some other people who give into their emotions easily and their actions are often controlled by their emotions.

Being sensitive is not a bad thing but sometimes when emotions take charge, practicality takes a back seat. Having high emotional sensitivity can lead to a lot more destruction than the good it brings with it.

Today we will understand emotional sensitivity, what causes emotional sensitivity, and how to overcome emotional sensitivity so that your emotions and emotional vulnerabilities are not taken advantage of.

Let’s get started…

What Is Emotional Sensitivity?

Emotional sensitivity is nothing but being overly sensitive when it comes to your emotions. It basically means that you experience emotions in a more intensified manner than other people. Every emotion is a notch or so higher than other people around you.

There is nothing wrong with being emotionally sensitive. Emotional sensitivity helps you vent your feelings more easily as compared to other people. Therefore, they can be free of all kinds of emotional burdens and bottled-up feelings.

However, sometimes emotional sensitivity can become your enemy rather than your ally. When you are over-sensitive, your emotions often lead you on. You can easily fall prey to assumptions and imagination that might be completely different from reality.

It can be challenging to cope with such strong emotions daily. It can make your friends and family distance themselves from you because they don’t understand the reason behind such strong emotional responses.

Also read: How To Embrace Sensitivity As A Strength

What Causes Emotional Sensitivity?

There is no one particular factor to pinpoint and say that this causes emotional sensitivity. There are a lot of things that influence an individual’s emotions and how they choose to deal with them. However, some reasons can explain the presence of emotional sensitivity in an individual.

Let’s have a look at some possible causes of emotional sensitivity;

  • Genetics: according to some studies, some traits run within families and emotional sensitivity is one of them. If you are emotionally sensitive, you may have got it from your parents or other family members.
  • Hormones: your hormones can influence your physical as well as your emotional well-being. When there is a hormonal imbalance in the body, there are high chances of experiencing emotional sensitivity.
  • Environmental factors: sometimes situational stress can also lead to emotional sensitivity. Lack of sleep, exercise, nutritious food, etc can all contribute to the development of emotional sensitivity.

Also read: Why Am I So Emotional? 11 Reasons To Find Out

How To Overcome Emotional Sensitivity?

Emotional sensitivity can be temporary as well as permanent depending on what has caused it. No matter how you got you, living with emotional sensitivity can be challenging. If you are struggling with experiencing too intense emotions, here’s what you can do about it;

1. Accept and acknowledge your emotions:

it’s important to always accept your emotions. Ignoring your feelings and emotions will only aggravate your emotional sensitivity and make things even more difficult for you. If you are feeling something, accept its presence and know that the intensity is because of your sensitivity.

2. Try a self-assessment test:

there are a lot of sensitivity assessment tests available online. You can do a self-assessment test to see if you’re overreacting or if your response is out of proportion. If not, ask a trusted friend if your emotional response has blown out of proportion so that you can calm yourself down.

3. Engage in journaling:

journaling is a great way to keep a track of your emotions as well as what triggers your emotional sensitivity. Journal your emotions regularly and soon you’ll be able to understand yourself better and generate proportionate emotional responses.

4. Try not to label yourself or be judgemental:

emotional sensitivity is not a problematic condition, it can easily be managed by understanding your emotions and how they work for you. Do not label yourself or be judgemental towards yourself, it will only make your feel even more intensified emotions.

5. Know your trigger:

it is very important to know what triggers your emotional sensitivity. It can be anything from a situational trigger to a personal trigger. Once you are aware of your triggers you can effectively either cut those triggers out of your life or get over them so that they don’t trouble you anymore.

Also read: What Are The Signs Of Emotional Invalidation & How To Deal With Invalidation

That’s All Folks!

I hope you found this blog about emotional sensitivity helpful, interesting, and informative. Do share this blog with your friends and family so that we all know what causes emotional sensitivity and how to overcome emotional sensitivity.

Thanks for reading.

Take care and stay safe.

About The Author

Kirti Bhati
Kirti Bhati

I am an English literature (major) and psychology (minor) graduate from St. Bede’s College, Shimla. Postgraduate in Clinical psychology from IIS University, Jaipur. She has published a Research paper on Music therapy in the military population and Workplace stress in a national seminar conducted by Fortis hospital (gurugram) and international seminar conducted by St. Bede’s College, Shimla, Respectively. Authored a dissertation work on ‘effect of social media addiction on the mental and physical well-being in adolescents’ Currently working at calm sage as a writer.

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