The Difference Between Emotions and Feelings

Did you know that there are only six basic emotions? So how is it that Dr. Bach developed 38 flower remedies, each one for a specific emotion, feeling or mental state? It's not as contradictory as it sounds when you understand the difference between emotions and feelings.

What is an emotion?

Emotions are your body's alarm system.

• They happen instantly

• Are very short-lived and over in seconds or minutes

• Are the same for absolutely everybody

• Happen automatically in the alarm system part of your brain

What are the six basic emotions?

Fear, anger, joy, sadness, surprise and disgust. (Notice how love isn't there?)

What is a feeling?

A feeling is the story your mind tells you about the emotion you're experiencing.

• They can last for hours or days

• They are completely personal to you

• Are created by your thoughts in the thinking part of your brain

• Can be controlled and changed

Basically, an emotion is your body's instant reaction and a feeling is your mind explaining the reason for that reaction.

What are emotions and feelings for?

In essence, our emotions and feelings help to keep us safe from harm and guide us to health and wellbeing. They are natural and normal, and make our lives rich and interesting. They are meant to be experienced and flow through us. The difficulty comes when we find ourselves hanging on to unhealthy feelings and repeating unhealthy patterns of behaviour as a result of those feelings.

So how can we change our feelings?

Dr. Bach recognised that our feelings can be changed. He understood that every feeling is on a spectrum with a "positive" aspect at one end and a "negative" aspect at the other. His aim was to limit the extreme swings and not to spend a prolonged amount of time in a negative aspect.

The flower remedies help our feelings to shift and flow naturally, the way they are meant to. And by balancing our emotions, our health and happiness improve.

If you are feeling stuck in a negative feeling and want to change it, please do get in touch. You can easily book a consultation with me here.