Noticing before reacting
Most regulation happens in the gap between the feeling and the response. Widening that gap — through naming the emotion, slowing the breath, or stepping physically away for two minutes — is a skill that improves with practice.
Naming is surprisingly powerful: describing an emotion precisely tends to reduce its intensity.
Building tolerance
DBT-informed distress-tolerance techniques, grounding, and paced breathing help in the moment. Longer-term work looks at what makes certain emotions feel intolerable in the first place — often earlier experiences where they were unsafe to express.
Which combination is used depends on your assessment and what you are working towards.
Common questions
- Is emotional regulation the same as controlling emotions?
- No. Suppression tends to increase distress over time. Regulation is about responding to emotion flexibly rather than shutting it down.
Continue reading on emotional regulation
This article is part of our emotional regulation resource hub, which brings together the related articles and the psychological services that address it.
Anxiety
Understanding Anxiety — and Knowing When to Seek Help
Overthinking
Why Overthinking Feels Productive — But Rarely Is
Sleep
Sleep Difficulties: A Psychological View
Psychological Therapy
What Actually Happens in a First Therapy Session
Related services
- Anger Management — Support for frequent irritability, outbursts and the consequences anger can have at home or work.
- Personal Development — Non-clinical coaching-style sessions for clarity, motivation, habits and performance.
- Individual Psychological Counselling — One-to-one therapeutic sessions offering a confidential space to understand what you are experiencing and work towards change.
Ready to talk it through?
A single assessment appointment with Tayyab Murtaza, Clinical Psychologist & Hypnotherapist, is the clearest way to understand what you are experiencing and what would help. Sessions are available in person in Lahore and securely online across Pakistan and internationally.
About the author
Tayyab Murtaza is a Clinical Psychologist & Hypnotherapist and Founder of Fatima Hope and Psychological Centre, offering assessment, psychological therapy, group therapy and clinical hypnotherapy in Lahore and online. He holds a Master's degree in Clinical Psychology from International Islamic University, Islamabad (IIUI).
This content is for educational purposes and does not replace professional psychological assessment or treatment. If you are in crisis or at risk of harm, seek urgent local medical help.