Overreacting to tiny annoyances may look to some as a personality feature, yet it’s a completely natural phenomenon that everyone goes through.
Although it’s perfectly acceptable to feel your emotions and desire to erupt now and then, it doesn’t always feel good or improve the issue. You know how intense and upsetting it can be to be told you’re “too sensitive” or “overthink things.” Overreaction doesn’t indicate your feelings aren’t genuine. You are finding healthy strategies to manage and express your feelings, on the other hand, maybe beneficial. It will not only prevent you from overreacting, but it will also assist your long-term mental health.
Here are few ways to know if you’re overreacting-
- You’re worried or stressed.
People overreact to protect themselves from danger, according to the psychology of overreacting. The stress reaction is triggered when you feel a “danger” to our health. Stress hormones like cortisol and adrenaline are released to prepare you to fight or flee from a potential threat. Your heart begins to race, your body temperature rises, and you may even have physical symptoms such as stomach problems. While this reaction can help you avoid a traffic accident, it can also cause you to respond inappropriately to an insult.
- You didn’t get enough sleep.
Sleep aids in restoring our emotional brain circuits, which helps us prepare for the next day. And studies suggest that when you don’t get enough sleep, your brain’s colourful centres become 60% more reactive. Putting emotional events or triggers into context and producing appropriate, reasonable reactions is more difficult for the brain.
- You were irritated.
Everyone has their own set of triggers, which means you might all be too sensitive to specific critiques, anxieties, and other concerns depending on your own experiences. What may appear to some as a trivial affront might be the catalyst for years of suffering for others. When this happens, you have a stronger reaction than the situation warrants, recognize if you’re overreacting. Some people take out their frustrations on those around them, while others withdraw.
- You have a high level of sensitivity.
Being an HSP offers both advantages and disadvantages. You could be easily upset by people who don’t mean any harm or have their intentions misunderstood. Tension, aggressiveness, and confrontation overwhelm highly sensitive people more than others. Your sensitivity, on the other hand, can be considered a natural strength. You’re more likely to sympathize with people, be moved by beauty, and have a complex inner life.