Working with difficult emotions

- [Instructor] You're now prepared to learn one of the most valuable aspects of mindfulness practice; how to respond wisely in the face of strong emotions. When strong emotions like fear, anger, resentment, anxiety, shame, guilt arise, we can easily get overwhelmed in them. Lost in the force of these feelings, we feed them with stories about why we feel this way, who might be to blame, what we should have done and will do, reacting in ways that we might later regret. The good news is that mindfulness is a powerful and effective way to work with such strong emotions. Studies at UCLA have shown that mindfulness and compassion can directly diminish reactivity in the face of difficult emotions. Consider Jean, for example. He described struggling with his reactions to a coworker who was often manipulative and jealous, undermining the team effort so that nothing could get done. Jean was so caught up in frustration and anger. He…