Emotion regulation: psychophysiological correlates and the role of mind–body therapies.

It is nowadays widely recognised that the experience of an emotion encompasses both a cognitive and a physiological aspect. We can also observe this directly in our own experience; in fact, when we feel an emotion, specific thoughts associated with that feeling arise, and, at the same time, we can notice physiological changes in our bodies. Emotions are useful; they provide us with relevant information, but when emotional experiences are difficult to control, this can impact a person’s life and relationships. This is why appropriately regulating our emotions has a key role in well-being. A solid competence in regulating emotions efficiently and adaptively is fundamental in handling life challenges as well as in the treatment of several psychological disorders. Psychotherapy can have an important role in helping people understand their own emotions and learning cognitive strategies to improve these regulating mechanisms. More recent approaches in emotion regulation have given increasing importance to embodied aspects of emotions and have also identified measurable psychophysiological variables as indicators of individuals’ emotion regulation ability. Interventions that work on strengthening the integration of sensory perception and cognition, such as mind-body therapies, have been recognised as useful tools to improve internal regulating mechanisms by working on the central nervous system flexibility in emotional responses. Working not just with the mind but also with the body is something that, for a long time, has not been a common concept in the field of psychotherapeutic interventions, which were essentially based on direct conversation. However, as recent research on emotion regulation shows, our inner emotional life can benefit from implementing body-oriented interventions to improve psychological balance and flexibility. Classical verbal psychotherapeutic intervention remains central in treating psychological suffering; however, some psychotherapeutic approaches have begun to focus also on the body as an additional means to improve mental health. This suggests a broadening perspective and a potential change in direction in the way we look at psychotherapeutic treatments and psychological disorders prevention.