It’s easy to get caught up in the moment and let your feelings take over. But, it’s imperative to understand that even though you CAN’T always control what happens, you CAN control how you react.

I’m sure you’re probably aware of some of the benefits of controlling your emotions and staying calm. However, let me assure you that they are much more than you think. 

In fact, becoming a master of your own emotions will positively affect your interpersonal relationships and every aspect of your personal wellness – either directly or indirectly.

After reading this article, you’ll gain a new perspective; one that’ll convince you of the importance of actively working on controlling your emotions.

According to research, being emotionally competent and self-regulating form the foundation for long-term personal, social and academic success and for promoting mental health and well-being (Housman, 2017).

Now, let’s dive into the importance of controlling your emotions in greater detail.

Read also: 23 Simple tips to control negative emotions

Benefits of controlling emotions and staying calm

The benefits of controlling your emotions include:

• Increases life expectancy
• Improves social relationships
• Boosts mental health
• Increases happiness
• Enhances decision making
• Preserves energy
• Improves how you are perceived by others
• Minimizes regret
• Decreases physical pain
• Boosts productivity

Check out this guided daily 12-week journal that will help you calm anxiety, relieve stress and practice positive thinking every day.

1) Control your emotions to increase your life expectancy

First of all, being calm protects your physical health. 

In fact, numerous studies confirm that more anxious people have greater risk of dying from cardiovascular diseases than those who are less anxious.

Another study concluded that being even slightly stressed can cause considerable damage to your arteries and lead to a heart attack.

Notably, heart disease remains the leading cause of death worldwide. And yes, I’ll admit, some of the risks factors for heart disease are non-modifiable. 

Thus, they are entirely out of our control. But, don’t ignore the ones that you can actually do something about.

Imagine if you could increase your life expectancy by working on decreasing stress and remaining calm. Well you can!

There’s also lots of evidence of how stress can increase the risk of developing some cancers, damage your brain and disturb other vital processes in your body.

According to research, being flexible when it comes to regulating your emotions has even been associated with lower levels of distress after traumatic events (Côté et al., 2010).

“When you react, you let other control you. When you respond, you are in control.” ― Bohdi Sanders

2) You will have better social relationships

Being calm is powerful and contagious. Actually, if you stay calm most of the time it’s very likely that others around you will be calmer  as well.

Undeniably, most people prefer to be around calm and relaxed individuals. It’s a kind of magnet that attracts other people.

That’s why having a calm demeanor will make it easier for others to interact with you. They will appreciate the fact that being around you doesn’t make them feel more stressed and nervous.

This may ultimately lead to even deeper relationships. Although debatable, you may even be perceived as friendlier or more professional.

Through modeling, your colleagues may learn to regulate their own negative emotions when faced with similar conflicts (Côté et al., 2010). 

Plus, there is just something more attractive and interesting about persons who can control their emotions and remain calm even during very stressful situations.

3) Remaining calm is good for your mental health

We’ve already established that your physical health will greatly benefit from remaining calm.

However, learning to control your emotions will do tons on good for your mental health as well.

You may be wondering why stress has such a negative impact on us in the first place!?

The answer is simple: we produce more cortisol and adrenaline to prepare our bodies for “fight or flight” situations. This process helps us to react and do something when we are under threat.

Notably, these hormones are both essential for your health. But, if this reaction is released too often or too much it is very likely that it will start to damage your bodies and you may experience anxiety, irritability, memory loss etc.

I’ll be the first to admit that remaining calm can be extremely challenging at times. That’s exactly why you need to be intentional – at least at first until it becomes customary.

So, next time you’re in a bad mood and suddenly feel the urge to punch something or yell your head off try to remain focused on controlling your emotions and remain calm.

“You own your feelings. You own your thoughts. You control both. No one has the right to any of it—to any of you without your permission.” ― Carlos Wallace

4) You will benefit from the happiness it brings

Many philosophers agree that the possibility of living a happy live involves the ability to control one’s emotions.

The best part is that staying calm will not only improve your health and relationships but also make you a lot happier both directly and indirectly.

There is a scientific study that shows that 85% of persons diagnosed with major depression also had general anxiety disorders and 35% of them had symptoms of panic disorder (Tracy, 2012).

As an added bonus, remaining calm will also boost your creativity. 

5) Staying calm will help you make better decisions.

Being stressed and anxious will cause you to make poor choices sooner or later.

However, with the help of relaxation techniques like yoga, meditation or simply taking a walk in nature most people can calm down and collect their thoughts which is exactly what they need to make better decisions.

In fact, sometimes all we need is just to take a few more moments to think about all the possible consequences of our actions before we make a decision.

Additionally, regulating your emotions will help you to better communicate your goals and intentions.

The best part is that controlling your emotions is practically free of charge and open to everyone who wants to try.

6) Staying calm will preserve your energy

Undeniably, staying calm and relaxed will preserve your energy.

Actually, when we are stressed we tend to use a lot of energy unnecessarily both mentally and physically.

In fact, there is a lot of research that proves how important it is for us to have a positive outlook on life and stay away from negative thoughts as much as we can.

Therefore it makes perfect sense to concentrate on keeping calm to preserve your energy.

“You'll never cross an emotional bridge, if you keep rushing back to the other side.” ― T.F. Hodge

7) Staying calm will improve how you are perceived by others

Another benefit of staying calm is that it will improve your image in the eyes of others.

When you are stressed and your emotions are running high, you will likely become irritated and short-tempered and this is not something that people would want to associate with.

On the other hand, if you are relaxed and in control of your emotions it will definitely reflect on your image and people will be more likely to trust you and see you as a positive force in their lives.

Research shows that being able to regulate your emotions reflects variation in how well you can adjust according to the current demands of a situation.

This is in fact one of the most critical elements of our ’emotional repertoire.’

In addition. controlling your emotions and staying calm will cause you to maximize on social interactions and avoid being socially excluded (Côté et al., 2010).

8) Staying calm will minimize regrets

It’s also very likely that people who are calm and relaxed tend to have fewer regrets because they react less on their negative emotions.

For example, if you don’t control your emotions when a stressful event happens, there is a much higher chance that things will get out of hand way too fast. 

BTW, did you know that regulating how you visibly express your emotions can either amplify or reduce expressive behavior? Well, it can! (Côté  et al., 2010).

9) Staying calm will prevent physical pain

The effects of stress and anxiety on your body can be quite strong.  

If you didn’t know any better you might think that some of these symptoms are caused by another problem and not the stress and anxiety directly.

Some of the other physical problems that can be caused by stress are headaches, muscle tension, fatigue, chest pain, sleep problems, upset stomach, and diarrhea.

10) Staying calm will boost your productivity

In today’s society, it’s very important to be productive and this is definitely not an easy task.

However, if you can find a way to stay calm and relaxed even in the most difficult of situations you will be able to get more done in a shorter period.

This is because you will be less distracted by the things that are causing you stress and anxiety and you will be able to focus on the task at hand.

According to research, emotional regulation is not only linked to improved well-being but also to emotional and academic success.

In fact, being able to control your emotions will often lead to you being perceived as more effective in professional settings (Côté et al., 2010).

Unfortunately many persons who are successful will have decreased emotional regulation because they tend to hold greater power which can be liberating to a person’s behavior.

As such, some successful people believe that they can express their emotions freely, without regulating them.

There are many different benefits to staying calm, and we have only mentioned a few of them here.

Wondering what are the best tips to stay calm? Read my article on 8 Experts tips to calm down quickly when anxious. 

It’s imperative to not only be knowledgeable of these strategies but know how to implement them.

Disadvantages of regulating your emotions and staying calm

Unfortunately, controlling your emotions may have it’s psychological costs – which definitely adds up with time.

For instance, some people with high emotional control may be less happy and successful due to the considerable emotional resources needed to regulate your emotions.

This can have a negative effect on well-being. Thus, it’s important to control your emotions and not suppress them. 

In addition, actively suppressing some emotions like sadness can cause others to perceive that you do not need assistance.

Not only will this lead to you not receiving social support, but it may even deteriorate your relationship with others (Côté et al., 2010).

“Engaging in meditative self-reflection and gaining increased control of inner experiences provides a person with a sense of control over fear and trembling and the chaos of life.” ― Kilroy J. Oldster

Final words on the benefits of remaining calm

The bottom line is that if you are constantly stressed or anxious, then it’s time to change this.

Take the first step towards a happier, healthier life by working on staying calm rather than constantly worrying.

As you can see, there are many reasons for us all to control our emotions as much as we can.

It’s practically free and will not only improve your health, relationships, and happiness but also enable you to make better decisions and preserve your energy.

So why not try it out? Be intentionally calm and enjoy the benefits.

Related Topics

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In this post, I’ll share 23 simple tips to help you get a handle on those negative emotions.

Keep reading for some helpful advice. Read more

How can I achieve behavioral change?

Sticking to a routine or making a behavioral change can be difficult.

However, it’s not impossible. In this post, we’ll outline the theoretical approach for achieving behavioral change and staying on track.

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References

Côté S, Gyurak A, Levenson RW. The ability to regulate emotion is associated with greater well-being, income, and socioeconomic status. Emotion. 2010 Dec;10(6):923-33.

Housman, D.K. The importance of emotional competence and self-regulation from birth: a case for the evidence-based emotional cognitive social early learning approach. ICEP 11, 13 (2017).

Olafiranye O, Jean-Louis G, Zizi F, Nunes J, Vincent M. Anxiety and cardiovascular risk: Review of Epidemiological and Clinical Evidence. Mind Brain. 2011 Aug;2(1):32-37. PMID: 21822473; PMCID: PMC3150179

Tracy, N. (2012, January 3). Relationship Between Depression and Anxiety, HealthyPlace. Retrieved on 2022, January 9.