Stressful situations cause both physiological (body) and psychological (mind and emotion) reactions. This includes elements of unpredictability, uncontrollability, and feeling overloaded. We feel stressed when we evaluate environmental demand as beyond our ability to cope successfully.

Places we go when things are uncertain or too much Stressed Places that we go to when life is good include joy, happiness, calm, contentment, gratitude, foreboding joy, relief, and tranquillity. The places we go when it’s beyond us include awe, wonder, confusion, curiosity, interest, and surprise. For example, the places we go when we’re searching for connection include belonging, fitting in, connection, disconnection, insecurity, invisibility, and loneliness. The ability to name this emotion or experience is essential to being able to process it in a productive and healing manner.īrene Brown grouped the emotions as an Atlas, mapping the emotions out like geographic regions. A universe where we can share the stories of our bravest and most heartbreaking moments with each other in a way that builds connection.

Using an Atlas of the Heart to make meaning out of our emotionsīrene wants to open up that language portal so even more of us can step through it and find a universe of new choices and second chances. Having the correct words to describe specific emotions makes us better able to identify those emotions in others, as well as to recognise and manage the emotional experiences when we feel them ourselves. Language shows that naming an experience doesn’t give the experience more power it gives us the power of understanding and meaning. When we don’t regulate or manage our emotions and experiences in a way that allows us to move through them productively, our self-awareness is diminished. When we don’t have the language to share our experiences, our ability to make sense of what’s happening and share it with others is limited. Language is our portal to meaning-making, connection, healing, learning, and self-awareness.

Brown hopes that Atlas of the Heart can be the map that guides our adventurous hearts back to our truest selves when we have no idea where we are or where we’re going. The natural gift of cultivating meaningful connections with others involves having an equally deep relationship with ourselves and being able to explore without the fear of getting lost. Drawn from extensive research over the past two decades, Atlas of the Heart provides an overview of the necessary skills and actionable framework for building meaningful connections. In Atlas of the Heart, Dr Brene Brown takes us on a journey through the 87 emotions and experiences that define the meaning of being human. What You Will Learn from Atlas of the Heart

Atlas of the Heart by Brené Brown