Heal Play Love University- The Emotions Wheel
The Emotion Wheel is a visual tool designed to help individuals identify and understand their emotions. It categorizes a wide range of feelings, facilitating greater emotional awareness and expression.
One of the most recognized versions is Robert Plutchik's Wheel of Emotions, developed in 1980.
In my career, I have found that this wheel is most helpful to men. When we had a sticks and bricks location, I would often find the husbands and dads of clients standing in front of our Emotions Wheel poster, studying it.
This often sparked great conversations, as then men were often both mystified and delighted to find that there are not only so many emotions, but also that an abundance of words exist to label them!
While we no longer have the poster hanging up in a physical office, the Emotions Wheel is available online for all to enjoy. Let’s explore the wheel now and see if you can find any benefit from it.
Plutchik proposed eight primary emotions:
Joy
Sadness
Trust
Disgust
Fear
Surprise
Anticipation
Anger
These emotions are arranged in the wheel, with opposite emotions placed directly across from each other. The wheel also illustrates how primary emotions can combine to form more complex feelings. We will explore these in a moment.
But first, let’s discover how can we use the Emotion Wheel in daily life.
Identifying Emotions: By examining the wheel, individuals can pinpoint their current feelings, enhancing self-awareness.
Improving Emotional Vocabulary: The wheel introduces a broad spectrum of emotional terms, aiding in more precise expression.
Facilitating Communication: Understanding and articulating emotions can lead to better interpersonal interactions.
Supporting Mental Health: Recognizing and addressing emotions is crucial for emotional well-being and can be a valuable tool in therapeutic settings.
Now, let’s explore each emotional category in more depth.
Each category contains primary emotions, and as you move outward from the center of the wheel, you find more nuanced or complex feelings that stem from combinations of these primary emotions.
1. Joy (Primary Emotion)
Serenity Ecstasy Elation Glee Happiness
2. Sadness (Primary Emotion)
Sorrow Grief Disappointment Dismay Despair Melancholy
3. Trust (Primary Emotion)
Admiration Acceptance Love Confidence Affection
4. Disgust (Primary Emotion)
Contempt Revulsion Loathing Disdain
5. Fear (Primary Emotion)
Apprehension Terror Anxiety Dread Horror Panic
6. Surprise (Primary Emotion)
Amazement Astonishment Startlement Disbelief Wonder
7. Anticipation (Primary Emotion)
Interest Eagerness Vigilance Excitement Hope Expectation
8. Anger (Primary Emotion)
Rage Annoyance Irritation Fury Resentment Displeasure Emotion Blends
As emotions blend, more complex emotions emerge. These include things like:
Joy + Trust = Love
Trust + Fear = Submission
Fear + Surprise = Alarm
Surprise + Sadness = Disappointment
Sadness + Disgust = Remorse
Disgust + Anger = Contempt
Anger + Anticipation = Aggressiveness
Anticipation + Joy = Optimism
Congratulations! Your Emotional Intelligence score just increased! What are your thoughts? Did you learn anything from the Emotions Wheel? Will you be able to utilize this knowledge to improve your emotional regulation and relationships?
Questions you would like answered in a video? Contact me at [email protected]
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Heal Play Love University (formerly 'Can We Talk?') is a youtube channel dedicated to psychology, therapy, relationships, healthy living, well-being and the like.
This channel should not be considered therapy, nor a substitute for therapy. If you need help with any mental, emotional, family or relational struggle, please seek help from a qualified professional in your area.
While I am a therapist, this is not therapy. I’m hoping it’s going to be everything you ever wanted to know about therapy but were afraid to ask. But really, it’s just my little ol opinion put inio put into a therapy vlog.
If you are triggered by any of the topics discussed, or if you would like help with a life transition or any type of mental health issue, please find a therapist in your area. You can do an Internet search, ask a friend for a recommendation, or a doctor for a referral.
Many religious organizations offer faith-based counseling and many professionals offer counseling online. Or, you might prefer a support group, where several people gather to process a similar issue or life circumstance together, usually with the assistance of a Group Facilitator.
Now, if you are a client, or ever want to be a client, you may not want to watch my videos. Some will contain self-disclosure. Knowing personal stuff about your therapist is deemed to be burdensome for clients because the client can end up feeling bad for the therapist or take on the therapist’s emotional struggle rather than focus on their own work. This is not my intention.
When I post about me, it is stuff I’ve worked through, and I don’t want anyone to feel bad for any struggles I’ve personally encountered. I count it a blessing to suffer trials and I’m hoping some of my life experience- along with my education, training, and clinical experience- will benefit those who watch the videos I post here.
Nevertheless, if you are- or ever want to be- a client- don’t watch my videos! For the rest of you, I will provide links to any resources I’ve used in the description of each video.
This will be done so I can provide proper credit to original sources, and so you can learn more on the topic if you choose.
Heal Play Love University (formerly 'Can We Talk?') is dedicated to psychology, therapy, relationships, healthy living, well-being and the like. I am an LMFT but this channel should not be considered therapy, nor a substitute for therapy. If you need help with any mental, emotional, family or relational struggle, please seek help from a qualified professional in your area.
#therapy #therapist #healplaylove #itsgoodtotalk
