Emotional well-being or wellness is an awareness, understanding and acceptance of our feelings, and our ability to manage effectively through challenges and change. It has a bearing on our personal and professional relationships, how well we fare at school or work, and also our overall physical and mental health.
In Asia, the level of emotional well-being varies from country to country with Indonesia, Philippines and Thailand at the top, while countries like India, Korea and Japan fare less well. In the recent 2 years however, with the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic-induced isolation, fear, uncertainty, and economic hardship, it has negatively impacted wellness globally as people struggle to cope.
How do you know if you are emotionally well or not? Are there any signs that point to your emotional wellness?
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What Are the Signs That Point to Emotional Wellness?
1. You feel for others
The ability to empathise correlates with your state of emotional wellness. You can understand and feel for others only if you are in a positive frame of mind. When you are emotionally well, you are more likely to show compassion and kindness, to help others in whatever ways you can. It can be as simple as getting them a book that they want or buying groceries for them. But the smile it brings to their faces brings contentment.
2. You like being yourself
When you are emotionally well, you have a healthy self-esteem or self-worth. You are content with your strengths, embrace your weaknesses and accept the way you are. You are unafraid to present yourself as you are to the outside world without feeling the pressure to put up fronts to conform to societal standards.
3. You are easily adaptable
You are highly flexible and can adapt to any situation. When a challenge crops up, you are not easily frazzled, able to assess it well and decide on what course of action would be best required. If one strategy is not working out well, you are able to execute alternative plans so that you get the best outcome. For example, when you have disagreements with your friends or colleagues, sometimes you talk things out whereas other times you let the situation cool off.
4. You are thankful
If you are emotionally well, you count your blessings instead of being fixated with what you lack. You tend to be thankful for whatever you have in life and express your gratitude to others readily. This is great for building relationships as well.
5. Your life is meaningful
You have a strong sense of purpose or goal in your life that provides a meaning to it. It can be doing social service and serving the community, or volunteering at a hospital to look after terminally ill patients. This purpose leaves you happy and contented.
6. You value experiences more than materialistic things
You are not carried away with pursuing wealth, beauty, prosperity and material things. You may have goals in life, but you value life lessons more than achievements. More time is spent on experiences like travelling or reading, rather than attaining luxury goods. You also like sharing experiences and bonding with others which would make them happy.
How to Improve Your Emotional Well-being
- Understand your emotions and try to address them. For example, if you are feeling sad, find out what makes you sad and try to address the root cause.
- Always express your feelings. Talk to people close to you to release pent-up emotions. Suppressing them can affect your overall wellbeing.
- Do not act rashly. Always consider carefully before you act to avoid wrong decisions and unpleasant situations.
- Practise relaxation techniques to calm yourself. This includes breathing, meditation and yoga.
- Try to maintain a work-life balance. This helps you to enjoy life and feel emotionally well.
- Take care of your physical health as it can affect you emotionally. Eat a well-balanced diet and engage in regular exercise.
Final Thought
Your emotional well-being is in your hands. Whatever adversities you face in life, try to be as positive as possible. Be thankful for all that you have. This will help you lead a happy and contented life.
