Have you ever said something out of anger or rumbled-up emotions? How did you feel afterward? Did you wish you could have done things differently? Are you frequently asking yourself the question of how to stop letting your emotions get the best of you?

You’re not alone if you feel this way. We’ve all done things we aren’t proud of because we made our emotions get the best of us.

Sometimes you get so emotional about something that it affects how we interact with others and our decisions. Our mood affects us more than we can imagine.

With just one wrong move based on your emotions, we can make the best or the worst decisions in our life.

So we must keep our emotions in check or control how we allow our emotions to affect us. Having control over your emotions will make you mentally and emotionally strong.

The good news is that it is possible to have that control. Like everything else, you can learn to control your emotions through practice and consistency.

Here are some practical steps to help gain better control over your emotions

1. Identify your triggers. Knowing your opponent is the best way to fight. Know what triggers you to the point of losing it. When you can identify your triggers, it’s easier to dodge or see them coming so you can analyze the situation.

• For instance, if you realize that watching violent movies reminds you of old memories that cause you pain, you can avoid watching movies with violence or anything relating to it.

2. Analyze your impact. Think about the aftereffects of your actions. Sometimes we only see how badly our actions affect others after doing them. So it will be wise if we stop to think about the impact of our actions before we make a move.

• You can ask yourself these questions: Am I acting on impulse? Is my decision right? How would it affect those around me? How would I feel about this later?

3. Accept your emotions. Sometimes, out of ego, we refuse to accept how we feel. There are times we get overwhelmed by emotions that we can’t tell what we feel at the moment.

• Take some time to accept what you feel. Covering your emotions or pretending not to feel how you feel only makes it worse. It doesn’t make it go away.

• Anger sometimes disguises emotions that feel weak, like guilt or embarrassment. And also, there’s a possibility that suppressing your emotions can cause you to turn to unhealthy coping habits like food or alcohol abuse.

4. Find a solution. Maybe staying calm for a few minutes or going away from the scene helps you control your emotions.

• Look for practical ways to control your emotions when you find yourself in situations that could trigger you.

5. Communicate effectively. Most complicated unresolved issues result from inadequate communication. Another way to learn to control your feelings is to learn how to express them to the other party’s understanding.

• Being all worked up by your feelings could blind you from seeing how you’re expressing them.

Having control over how we react to things requires some work and mind training. It may take a while, but the results are rewarding. Keep in mind these few tips and make an effort to put them into practice while being patient and consistent.