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Emotional Illusions

By: Michael S. Broder Ph.D.

Just as optical illusions often make things appear to be a different size than they are in reality, the same is true for emotional illusions, for example, how often do you tell yourself that something that’s occurred is a catastrophe when in reality it is simply just a disappointment or an inconvenience. That’s an example of where an emotional illusion can lead to rage, depression, anxiety, or other negative emotions.

Another form of emotional illusion is called infatuation, which is merely a strong initial attraction toward another person, but you fully believe that those feelings represent true romantic love.

So just as in many other illusions, infatuation and true romantic love are almost indistinguishable by the one who feels them. Often the only way that you can tell them apart, is to see how long they last and whether they increase or decrease as you get to know the other person.

Remember, our emotions bring out both the best and worst in us. But by realizing that they are often error prone we can allow ourselves to experience them while cutting our losses.