"Oh, are you feeling frustrated?"

"That sounds really frustrating..."

There are so many other words to express emotions other than "frustrated" but why was that the only one that what was coming to mind when I was trying to teach my toddler what was happening in their body?

Disappointed, jealous, embarrassed, angry, ashamed - those are way more on the mark and elicit an entirely different and appropriate response.

I realized that I may be emotionally illiterate - not only to identify and name the emotions, but to understand how they operate within my brain and psyche.

These are some of the conversations I've been having with Angel McNeil, the nanny who watches my kids and is currently studying these concepts in her Graduate program, so together we explore the science behind emotions, how to move through 8 of the most difficult ones, and overall hopefully scratch the surface of Emotional Literacy 101 together.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices