What’s the difference between ‘Reacting’ & ‘Responding’…
The art of mastering our emotions… 😳
As always I write from my own experience, gained along my walk of life…
I’ve been reflecting on the difference between reacting & responding… so what’s this all about…
When we react to something, a person, a situation, a comment, we usually do so immediately, instinctively, without thinking… this reaction comes from our emotional body… a reaction is usually an emotional reply… depending on the intensity of the situation… when we react emotionally, we may later regret reacting in the way we did, and seek to apologise, or not… 😯
When a reaction escalates into an emotional situation, with voices raised, or becomes an argument… these reactions are coming from the unhealed self, from emotional wounds, from the unconscious part of us which needs healing… this is a message from the body that some shadow work is called for here, if we wish to move away from emotional situations which don’t help anybody… effectively we are trauma bonding at the same level as the person we’re interacting with… 🤔… we need to rise above the situation…
When we choose to respond we take the time to make a measured, calm response, we reflect, give considered thought, we respond from a level of emotional maturity… where both parties may benefit from the highest possible outcome… and the more healed person will act as an example to the more reactive person about how to manage an emotional situation… a healed person with some emotional intelligence can instantly diffuse a potentially tricky situation…
I don’t profess to be perfect… the younger me has certainly reacted emotionally to situations… but over time, when we embark on a conscious healing journey… we mature emotionally and gain a level of emotional intelligence…
I have often observed people reacting to me, or others around me, in an emotional way, which has often taken me by surprise, and I have learnt to control my reactions, and reflect on how I wish to respond later, or the next day, or next week…or never 🤣… depending on the situation… I often sleep on it… and respond in a considered way later on…
It is ok to react instantly, instinctively… and we usually all do… but we need to learn to check ourselves when a situation is or could become emotional… it is good to have an awareness of when a situation could blow out of proportion…
Anyway, I hope these thoughts may help you next time you go to react to something… hold back, keep calm and respond in your own time… don’t let others rush you into responding before you’re ready…
With love 🙏🏻
Victoria 💗🦋
Moi, around 2003