Visceral people, when instinct dominates reason

Visceral people tend to be attractive to us because of the authenticity of their words and actions. They are sincere, determined, they do not falsify what they feel and they tend to be more decisive as they have to apply less inhibition to their behavior. Furthermore, they let themselves be carried away by their emotions in a passionate way, with fewer filters. However, this, which may sometimes seem fascinating, has its problematic side.

Being excessively visceral defines a type of profile in which instinct and desire govern. On a mental level, the temporal distance between inputs and decision making is reduced. What’s more, the more intense the desire, the impulse or that internal motivation, the less the reflective part has to say; and, therefore, regret is more frequent.

On the other hand, it is interesting to know that psychology has been interested in this pattern of behavior for decades. In the past, these visceral reactions favored our survival, and so much so that the visceral response is still very present in our brain programmingit’s just that, sometimes, getting carried away by it causes us more than one problem…

We analyze it.

Being very visceral has its benefits and its risks. In any case, it is important that the person knows how to develop a more reflective approach.

What are visceral people like?

Viscerality is related or associated in its semantics to the opinion of the gut, the viscera, of what we feel, and that springs from the deepest depths of the person’s interior. Now, what do we mean by “the deepest”? With this term we are giving voice to our instincts, to that repertoire of states such as pain, hunger, desire, fear…

Dr. George L.oewenstein, psychologist Carnegie Mellon University has dedicated a lot of time to studying those “visceral” factors inherent to our actions. Thus, something that tells us in an investigation is that Most of us demonstrate clear visceral behavior on numerous occasions.

A visceral feeling is one that urges us to do something that is not always governed by reason.. It is the automatic mechanism that urges us to satisfy hunger, to scream when a wound hurts, to feel fear when we are threatened, etc. All of these are natural and understandable behavioral patterns.

However, The problem comes when we hand over control of our mental and non-mental acts to emotions that have a lot of energy associated with them.. It happens when, for example, we let ourselves be carried away by the internal signals of a brain addicted to tobacco, gambling, online shopping, alcohol, unhealthy food, and even a dependent and harmful emotional relationship…

There are people more visceral than others, it’s true. And although this profile may have certain positive and interesting traits, it also has that more problematic side. We see it below.

Intuitions and hunches, the instinctive voice

The University of California has studied the relationship between the phenomenon of intuition and instinctive behavior. In fact, this is a theoretical area that the journalist and writer Malcolm Gladwell has already delved into, with his best seller Intuitive Intelligence (2005).

Many times, when we are forced to make a decision, instead of analyzing each variable, we take the quickest path. Intuitions and hunches are thinking shortcuts that allow us to react quickly to everyday demands. And we do it by drawing on not only past experience.

Our visceral emotions, such as fear, passion or curiosity, drive us to action, to those poorly considered decisions. Thus, something characteristic of visceral people is precisely to let themselves be constantly carried away by their intuitions.

Problems with behavior control

The person with serious difficulties controlling emotions and impulses has serious problems regulating their behavior.. This makes it unpredictable. Not even she herself can foresee her future behavior. Sometimes, it only takes a misunderstanding at work for her to react excessively, leading to consequences.

This is not only complex for those who are part of the visceral man or woman’s environment. The person himself also feels bad about himself. Being aware that one does not have full control over one’s behavior generates concern and discomfort.

Visceral people and passionate behavior

Being visceral can be an advantage for the artist looking to break the mold. It means living and expressing oneself from the deepest emotions, something interesting in many professional fields. Nor can we leave aside that, When the visceral personality feels passion for something (or someone) it shows an intense motivation oriented by desire.

However, by often avoiding the filter of reason and reflection mechanisms, they can go overboard, make bad decisions, make mistakes, and see their expectations shattered time after time. The emotionality in these profiles is very high and this can sometimes lead to depressive or manic states..

When we act on impulse and driven only by intense emotions, we are more prone to making mistakes.

The danger of acting against oneself

We pointed it out at the beginning. Visceral people can draw our attention for their authenticity, for their passion, for that excessive and effervescent enthusiasm they show when something interests them. However, An aspect that we will frequently see in them is repentance, contradiction and the perception of not having the reins of your life under control.

It is very common to hear phrases like «I don’t know why I did this”, “I don’t understand why I sometimes behave this way”, “I can’t control myself when this or that happens”etc. Behavior guided by visceral emotions sometimes results in going against oneself.

Well-being resides in a behavior in which emotions and reason always act in consensual harmony. Only then we decide better. Only in this way do we relate, achieve objectives and perceive ourselves in a more positive way.

To conclude, at this point, only one aspect is worth remembering. We can all show some visceral response at certain moments. Pay more attention to instinct and immediate desire, which reason is a common fact. That it happens from time to time is normal, but making it our lifestyle is not so much.

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