Who is to blame for your negative emotions? You!

[Caligastia]

You are the one who decides to interpret what is happening around you in a way that brings these emotions on.

Emotions are basically different physical states that your body takes on depending on what your brain tells it. If your brain doesnt tell your body to create an emotional state then it wont happen.

So the statement "You are making me angry" is false.

Any thoughts?

[Bereta_Eder]

fook you pr!ck

(now tell your mind not to give any negative signals you w@nker!)

[Spec]

Re: Who is to blame for your negative emotions? You!

Originally posted by Caligastia

So the statement "You are making me angry" is false.

The cause of that anger is a reaction in your brain. I can give you that. BUT, the reaction in your brain is cause by you.
If you steal something from me, it will be your fault if I'm angry because you will have cause the reaction in my brain.

Spec.

[Richelieu]

Are you saying that we have control over our emotions ? That we can "reason" our emotions away ?

In that case i agree but only to a certain degree. I'd like to think that i have some type of control over the way i feel.. but i ain't Spock. And i don't want to be.

[MichaeltheGreat]

That's the latest in shrink-babble.

So, if you get mugged on the way in to work, and the guy decides for the hell of it to kick your face in, then in the hospital, you find out you're uninsured, because your business partner let the policy lapse while embezzling everything you've spent the last 15 years building up, and then you call home, and get a message from your wife telling you she's left you for another woman, and cleaned out your savings, but you can have the mortgage and the kids -

If you have any problems with that, it's your own damn fault.

[Caligastia]

Re: Re: Who is to blame for your negative emotions? You!

Originally posted by Spectator
If you steal something from me, it will be your fault if I'm angry because you will have cause the reaction in my brain.

Spec.

Well the cause of the reaction is your interpretation of the events. Someone may steal from you but you can choose not to be angry because you realize that getting angry is futile. If you get angry it is because you choose to let the event anger you.

Of course, many people would feel angry if someone stole from them, and stealing is wrong, but the emotion is not directly caused by the event.

[Provost Harrison]

That's the advantage of the NHS, MtG

Well it is a bit silly. Emotions are a general endocrine neurochemical response to a situation, gearing your brain to a completely different means of functioning, whether it be fear, excitement, apprehension, etc, etc. To say that you can prevent them is bullsh*t. You try stopping yourself from increasing your heart rate through secretion of adrenaline and relaxing all anal autonomic function when someone is about to put a bullet in your head. You do this for a reason: adrenaline for the 'fight and flee' response, mobilises energy reserves, increases availability of oxygen and glucose to muscles through increased circulation (hence can move faster, for longer, or more powerfully). And you crap yourself to lose unnecessary mass.

To control is not always possible. You may be able to change certain habits with long term work or even psychoactive drugs, but the deeper underlying emotional response - no.

[BeBMan]

So I can call you a lot of stupid names, but it is your own fault if you feel insulted then?

[Caligastia]

Originally posted by MichaeltheGreat
That's the latest in shrink-babble.

So, if you get mugged on the way in to work, and the guy decides for the hell of it to kick your face in, then in the hospital, you find out you're uninsured, because your business partner let the policy lapse while embezzling everything you've spent the last 15 years building up, and then you call home, and get a message from your wife telling you she's left you for another woman, and cleaned out your savings, but you can have the mortgage and the kids -

If you have any problems with that, it's your own damn fault.

No, of course the normal reaction would be to feel angry and upset. Also in your example something physically happened, I am talking mostly about emotions that occur after something is said to you.

What I am saying is that emotions are not caused by what happened (unless you are physically affected), they are caused by your interpretation of events. Two people can have exactly the same thing happen to them and they will interpret the event differently and feel different emotions.

[Provost Harrison]

BeBro, be my guest

[Caligastia]

Originally posted by Provost Harrison
To control is not always possible. You may be able to change certain habits with long term work or even psychoactive drugs, but the deeper underlying emotional response - no.

The potential for control is different in different people. Emotions are chemical changes that happen in our body, and our brain controls our body.

[SlowwHand]

Originally posted by BeBro
So I can call you a lot of stupid names, but it is your own fault if you feel insulted then?

Exactly. Who cares what you (for instance) think ?

[Richelieu]

Originally posted by Caligastia


The potential for control is different in different people. Emotions are chemical changes that happen in our body, and our brain controls our body.

Try this : tell your lungs to stop breathing.

[Juggernaut]

Man hasn't got a free will in the first place, so noone is to blame for anything.

That is, if I killed you, it wouldn't be my fault, since I didn't knew better.

[Caligastia]

Originally posted by BeBro
So I can call you a lot of stupid names, but it is your own fault if you feel insulted then?

I can either choose to feel insulted or decide that it doesnt matter what you call me because I know what you say isnt true.

The saying is true - "Sticks and stones can break my bones but names will never hurt me"