I remember the first time I encountered a Feeling Wheel. My therapist asked me how I feel and I started telling her a story about what happened in my day, which I thought made my feelings clear. She told me that was just a story and not a feeling. Then she handed me this image of the wheel.
I was so intimidated at first.
I even felt some shame for not knowing what feeling I was experiencing.
But I looked at the wheel and after a few moments, I was able to point to one of them and speak it out loud. It was so helpful! I relied on the chart for many years to help me identify my feelings as I was becoming more familiar with connecting to myself on an emotional level.

As we start to use the chart and become more in tune with ourselves, we start to make connections between certain emotions and their bodily sensations. We will also be more aware of how our feelings affect our mood. A mood is how we express ourselves outwardly based on the feelings we have. Our mood affects our actions and interactions with the people around us. When you connect the dots between the feelings you have and how you express them, you are increasing your emotional intelligence. It is a skill that you can learn and one that gets easier over time as well.