Anxiety and Core Emotions

Anxiety and Core Emotions

Many people seek therapy in order to address their anxiety. However, in intensive short-term dynamic therapy (ISTDP) the task is more complex than identifying the anxiety and building coping mechanisms. In ISTDP, anxiety is viewed as an inhibitory emotion. It is experienced in order to block core emotions.

Core emotions include fear, anger, disgust, joy, excitement and sexual excitement. These are much more physiological experiences meant to inform us about our environment. Core emotions are hard-wired in our brains and therefore not subject to conscious control.

The Change Triangle is a good illustration to better understand the role of anxiety related to core emotions. Like shame and guilt, anxiety is an inhibitory emotion meant to block core emotions. The purpose of this block can vary but many times it is because the intensity of the feeling is overwhelming and our brains wants to shut them down in order to protect itself. Another possibility is that this block was learned in childhood to please our caretakers. That’s why getting to the root of our defenses helps us understand the way our change triangle works. 





The impact of anxiety on core emotions is this block that it creates so we can’t access our core emotions. When we are able to regulate our anxiety and identify our core emotions and how we feel them in our bodies then we are able to actually process them. 

Reference:

Hendel, Hilary Jacobs. “What Is the Change Triangle?” Psychology Today, Sussex Publishers, 18 July 2019, www.psychologytoday.com/intl/blog/emotion-information/201907/what-is-the-change-triangle.