Emotional regulation, mood, and extended emotional processing protocols — interventions for faa, mood, anger, grief, shame, fear, envy, joy, loneliness, resentment, excitement, and emotional boundaries.
(This is a domain sub-skill of the neuroskill-protocols repertoire. For the personalisation engine, API integration guide, modality router, and matching guidance, see the parent neuroskill-protocols skill. For evidence collection rules, see neuroskill-evidence.)
FAA Rebalancing → negative faa, low mood
Approach-motivation imagery + left-hand squeeze. Activates left frontal alpha.
◈ Imagery should match the person: A chef imagines a perfect dish. An athlete imagines a winning moment. A parent imagines their child laughing. Use THEIR approach motivation, not a generic one.
Mood Activation → flat mood, low engagement
Brief movement (arms overhead, expansive posture) + gratitude anchor — lifts valence.
◈ Smile broadly for 10 seconds (facial feedback hypothesis). Or hum an upbeat tune.
◈ Skip gratitude. Instead: name one thing that didn't go wrong today. Lower the bar.
◈ Gentle arm raises only to comfortable range. Gratitude anchor to a cherished memory.
Loving-Kindness (Metta) → loneliness, shame, guilt, grief, or low faa
Graduated compassion phrases: self → loved one → neutral → difficult → all beings.
◈ Secular framing: "Think of someone you care about. Wish them well silently. Now do the same for yourself."
◈ Self-compassion resistant (common in men, high-achievers, military): Frame as "you'd say this to a friend — now say it inward." Skip the word "compassion" if it triggers resistance.
◈ Child: "Send a warm thought to your best friend. Now to your pet. Now to yourself."
◈ Culturally adapted: In collectivist cultures, start with family/community before self — the sequence matters.
🔧 API: Before: check status → scores.faa (negative = withdrawal). During: say each phrase warmly ("May you be safe… may you be happy…"), dnd_set enabled:true. Track faa shift mid-protocol — if it turns positive, note it. After: label "metta meditation" with faa delta + mood delta. Over time: search_labels "metta" → correlate faa improvement across sessions → "Your frontal asymmetry shifts positive more quickly now than it did 2 weeks ago."
Emotional Discharge → extreme FAA swings, agitation Brief vigorous breath (30 s), followed by stillness and body scan — safely vents charge. ◈ No-breath variant: Vigorous hand shaking for 30 s, then stillness. Or stomp feet rapidly. ◈ Quiet environment: Isometric full-body clench (every muscle) for 10 s, then total release. ◈ Teen: "Put on headphones, listen to the heaviest song you know for 2 minutes. Then silence."
(Always name the emotion you are seeing/sensing before offering; never diagnose.)
Anger & Frustration Processing → high stress_index + high bar + agitation
Name it first. Palm-press discharge (10 s). Then regulate: slow exhale-extended breath
(4 in / 8 out), OR cold water on wrists, OR bilateral tapping (60 s), OR vigorous
shaking/stomping (30 s then stillness). Somatic locate. Finish with one clear
boundary or action statement. ~8 min.
Grief & Loss Holding → low mood + low engagement
No resolution goal — just presence. Body scan to locate grief physically. Hand on chest
(feel your own warmth). Three things remembered. Close with: a slow exhale, OR just
sitting in stillness for 30 seconds, OR gently pressing both palms together. The closing
ritual matters — the specific modality does not. ~10–15 min.
Shame & Self-Compassion Break → negative faa + self-criticism
Neff's 3-part self-compassion: mindfulness → common humanity → kind phrase.
Distinct from Metta (radiates inward, not outward). ~6 min.
Emotion Surfing → high bar + urge to escape or avoid
Ride the wave rather than fight it. Map the feeling in the body. Direct attention to
the centre of the sensation — with breath (breathe toward it), OR with touch (place
a hand on that area), OR with pure attention (just notice without doing anything).
Watch it peak and subside without acting on it. ~8 min.
Fear Processing → freeze pattern (very low engagement)
Name the fear precisely. Rate 0–10. Locate in body. Orienting sequence. Gentle rocking.
Ask: what does this fear most need me to know? ~10 min.
Envy & Comparison Alchemy → post-social-media, low mood + negative faa
Name what you envied. Convert to desire-signal: "That shows me I value ___."
Write one step toward that value. ~6 min.
Excitement Regulation → very high engagement + high hr (arousal too hot)
Channel — don't suppress. Name what's exciting. Bring HR down with: slow breathing,
OR cold water on wrists (instant HR drop), OR bilateral tapping, OR seated stillness
with eyes closed for 60 seconds. Write one immediate concrete next action. ~5 min.
Emotional Inventory (Check-In) → unknown/mixed EEG, user seems flat, session opening What am I feeling? Where? Intensity 0–10? What does it need? No fixing — just naming. ~3 min.
Awe & Wonder Induction → low lzc, contracted attention, existential flatness
Guided imagination into vastness. Recall a genuine awe moment. Expand the image.
Notice chest opening, the smallness that feels good. ~8 min.
Joy Amplification → mood > 0.7 + positive faa — savour a good state
Name what is good. Locate the physical felt sense. Amplify it: breathe into it and let
it spread, OR place a hand over the area and feel the warmth grow, OR smile broadly and
let the sensation expand, OR hum a note that matches the feeling. Create a sensory
snapshot to return to. Seal with gratitude. ~5 min.
Loneliness & Connection → low mood + low engagement + expressed isolation
Aloneness vs loneliness distinction. Loving-Kindness toward others in same pain.
One micro-action toward connection. ~8 min.
Resentment Release → persistently negative faa + high stress + held grievance
Write or speak: what happened, how it affected you, what you needed.
Not to excuse — to release carrying it. Somatic check. ~10 min.
Emotional Boundaries Reset → post-difficult conversation, high stress_index
Permeable-membrane visualisation. Return ownership of your feelings. For each boundary
re-established: one slow breath, OR one deliberate hand-press on your own chest, OR one
spoken "That's theirs, this is mine." Any ritual that marks the boundary works. ~5 min.