Sadhguru says excitement is the fire of life, but when left uncontrolled, it can burn the very ground you stand on. Excitement and anxiety are two sides of the same coin; mindfulness helps you choose which side you live on.
Article | February 26, 2008
Sadhguru: Excitement is a powerful emotion that can drive creativity, productivity, and joy. However, when left unchecked, it can also lead to impulsive decisions, stress, and a lack of focus. The experience of excitement ranges from mild enthusiasm to overwhelming exhilaration, and understanding how to manage it is essential for living a balanced life. Whether it's the anticipation of a new job, the thrill of an upcoming event, or even just the joy of small pleasures, learning how to control excitement allows you to stay grounded, make better decisions, and maintain a sense of inner peace.
In this article, we’ll explore the psychological and physiological nature of excitement, why it's important to manage this emotion, and various techniques for maintaining control over it. Through mindfulness practices, self-awareness, and strategic habits, you can learn to harness excitement's energy without letting it consume you. We will also delve into practical tools from ancient wisdom traditions, modern psychology, and real-life scenarios to offer a holistic approach.
Excitement is the fire of life, but when left uncontrolled, it can burn the very ground you stand on.
The Nature of Excitement
The Science Behind Excitement
Excitement is often associated with positive emotions and is triggered when the brain releases dopamine, the "feel-good" chemical that creates a sense of reward and pleasure. This emotion can be sparked by external stimuli, like achieving a goal, receiving good news, or experiencing something novel. The body reacts by accelerating heart rate, increasing blood flow, and activating the sympathetic nervous system. While this "fight or flight" response is useful in moderate doses, constant or extreme excitement can lead to overstimulation, poor decision-making, and emotional burnout.
Psychological Impact
Psychologically, excitement is a double-edged sword. On one hand, it can elevate your mood, motivate you to pursue your dreams, and build enthusiasm for life. On the other hand, excitement, when excessive, can cloud judgment and lead to impulsive actions. For instance, you might overspend due to the thrill of shopping or agree to too many commitments because you feel overly energized.
Uncontrolled excitement can also manifest as anxiety. The thin line between excitement and anxiety is crucial to recognize, as both emotions share physiological similarities—racing heartbeat, increased energy, and restlessness. While excitement can feel exhilarating, its flip side can lead to nervousness or even fear if not properly regulated.
Balance your excitement, for in the calm lies the clarity to make decisions that shape your destiny.
The Importance of Controlling Excitement
Why It Matters
Controlling excitement is not about suppressing joy or enthusiasm; rather, it's about channelling that energy constructively. Without proper control, excitement can:
Affect decision-making: When you're overly excited, you're more likely to make hasty or irrational decisions, overlooking potential risks.
Increase stress levels: Constant high-energy states can place strain on your body and mind, contributing to burnout or anxiety.
Disrupt focus and productivity: Excitement can scatter your thoughts, making it difficult to concentrate on the task at hand.
Lead to emotional volatility: When you ride the high of excitement, any disappointment or setback can feel disproportionately devastating.
In contrast, by managing excitement, you can maintain a sense of equilibrium, make thoughtful choices, and enjoy your experiences more deeply and mindfully. Controlled excitement also allows you to experience the full spectrum of emotions without being overwhelmed by any single one.
Finding Balance
The key to managing excitement lies in balance. Excitement itself is not the problem; it's the excess that needs to be tamed. You can still feel joy, passion, and anticipation, but with a grounded approach that keeps your mind clear and focused. Balance enables you to savour the highs of excitement without losing yourself in them, maintaining emotional stability no matter what life throws your way.
True mastery of excitement lies in savoring the moment without rushing to the future it promises.
Techniques for Controlling Excitement
1. Mindfulness and Meditation
One of the most effective ways to control excitement is through mindfulness. Mindfulness teaches you to be present in the moment without becoming overwhelmed by emotions. When excitement arises, mindfulness helps you observe it without immediately reacting to it.
Steps for Mindfulness:
Observe your emotions: When you start to feel excited, pause and take a moment to notice the emotion. How does it feel in your body? Is your heart racing? Are your thoughts speeding up?
Label the emotion: Acknowledge that you're feeling excited without judgment. Simply naming the emotion can help you gain distance from it.
Focus on your breath: Deep, slow breathing activates the parasympathetic nervous system, which calms the body. Practice deep breathing when you notice excitement building.
Stay present: Mindfulness encourages you to remain aware of the present moment instead of being carried away by fantasies about the future. It anchors you in the here and now, which can help prevent excitement from spiralling out of control.
Ground yourself in reality; let excitement fuel your joy, not blind your wisdom.
Types of Meditation for Managing Excitement:
Body Scan Meditation: This type of meditation involves mentally scanning your body for tension or excitement. By focusing on different parts of your body, you become more aware of physical sensations and can release built-up energy.
Loving-kindness Meditation: Sending compassion and kindness to yourself and others can calm the mind and balance heightened emotions, including excitement.
Breath Awareness Meditation: Focusing solely on your breath creates a natural calming effect, which can lower the intensity of excitement.
2. Visualization
Visualization is another powerful tool for managing excitement. By mentally rehearsing the event or situation that excites you, you can desensitize yourself to it, which reduces its emotional charge.
How to Use Visualization:
Create a mental movie: Close your eyes and imagine the event or scenario that excites you. Visualize every detail—what you see, hear, feel, and do. This practice helps you feel more familiar with the situation, reducing the intensity of your emotions when the real moment arrives.
Stay grounded in reality: While visualizing, remind yourself of the real-life context of the event. This keeps you from building unrealistic expectations, which can inflate excitement to unhealthy levels.
Visualize a calm version of yourself: Imagine yourself responding calmly and mindfully to the situation, regardless of how exciting it is. This practice can condition your mind to remain steady even in high-energy situations.
Excitement can scatter your thoughts or sharpen your focus—the choice depends on your ability to remain centered.
3. Physical Activity
Excitement is an energy state, and one of the best ways to control excess energy is to release it physically. Physical activity helps balance the nervous system, reduce stress hormones, and restore calm.
Types of Physical Activity to Control Excitement:
Yoga: Yoga combines movement with breath control and mindfulness, making it an ideal practice for calming the body and mind. Asanas (postures) like Child’s Pose, Mountain Pose, and Forward Fold can help ground you when you're feeling overexcited.
Cardio exercise: Running, swimming, or cycling can help release pent-up energy and reduce the physiological symptoms of excitement, like a racing heart or restlessness.
Stretching and deep breathing: Simple stretches combined with deep breathing can relax tense muscles and slow down your heart rate, calming excitement.
Slowing down your body helps slow down your mind, keeping excitement from racing ahead of reason.
4. Practice Self-Awareness
Self-awareness is key to managing any emotion, including excitement. By cultivating a deeper understanding of your triggers and reactions, you can anticipate when excitement is likely to arise and take steps to control it.
How to Cultivate Self-Awareness:
Identify triggers: Reflect on situations that tend to excite you. Are there certain events, people, or thoughts that set off a surge of excitement? Knowing your triggers helps you prepare for them in advance.
Notice your body's signals: Excitement often manifests physically before it becomes conscious. Learn to recognize signs like increased heart rate, shallow breathing, or fidgeting. These are cues that you may need to intervene before excitement escalates.
Keep a journal: Writing about your experiences with excitement can help you gain insight into how you react to different situations. Reflect on past instances where excitement got the better of you and explore how you might handle similar situations in the future.
Visualize the calm within your excitement, and you will always stay in control, no matter how high the waves rise.
5. Set Realistic Expectations
Excitement often stems from expectations—whether it's about an event, an achievement, or an interaction. One way to manage excitement is by setting realistic expectations for yourself and others.
How to Set Realistic Expectations:
Be honest with yourself: Ask yourself if your excitement is based on an idealized version of reality. Are you expecting everything to go perfectly, or are you prepared for potential challenges? Grounding your expectations in reality can help prevent excitement from building to unmanageable levels.
Prepare for multiple outcomes: Instead of fixating on one possible outcome, mentally prepare for several scenarios. This helps you stay balanced even if things don’t go exactly as you hope.
Avoid future fantasies: While it's natural to look forward to things, excessive fantasizing can create unrealistic expectations. Stay focused on what you can control in the present, rather than getting lost in thoughts about the future.
6. Slow Down
When you're excited, everything can feel fast-paced. Your thoughts race, your actions become hurried, and time seems to speed up. Learning to slow down—both mentally and physically—can help you regain control over excitement.
Ways to Slow Down:
Practice deep, mindful breathing: Taking slow, deep breaths calms your nervous system and helps you slow down your thoughts. When you feel excitement rising, pause and take several slow breaths before continuing with your day.
Speak and move more slowly: Excitement often causes us to speak quickly and rush through tasks. By consciously slowing down your speech and movements, you can bring yourself back to a more balanced state.
Take breaks: When you're feeling excited, it's easy to get caught up in the momentum and push forward without resting. Schedule breaks throughout the day to pause, reflect, and check in with yourself. This can help prevent excitement from spiralling out of control.
Embracing the Calm in Excitement
Excitement is a natural and wonderful part of life, but like all emotions, it must be managed to prevent it from overwhelming you. By practising mindfulness, developing self-awareness, and cultivating techniques like visualization, breath control, and physical activity, you can harness the energy of excitement without losing your balance. Controlling excitement doesn’t mean you suppress joy or enthusiasm—it means learning to navigate life’s highs with grace, wisdom, and inner peace. When you master the art of controlling excitement, you open the door to a more centred, fulfilling, and meaningful life.
