Interview with Byron Athene

Published: Aug. 15, 2023, 7 a.m.

Byron Athene is a psychotherapist and a bit of a philosopher who believes we have some concepts wrong when it comes to emotions.

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He backs into his theory by explaining that a lot of people think that we need to have bad to explain (or enjoy) the good and that if something good happens, something bad is likely to happen.

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Personally, I\u2019m more a fan of the law of polarity which says that both exist at the same time, so what is it we\u2019re actually focusing on.

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Byron says that some people believe that \u201cbad\u201d emotions exist to motivate you. And I have a different view around that type of motivation. We get ethics and morals when we\u2019re younger, we also are given the good child/bad child constructs based on behavior for the sake of control.

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And then there\u2019s what Byron calls the inevitability theory. We\u2019re bound to feel bad about certain things.

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I\u2019m not certain about any of this, but I\u2019m willing to entertain it because I want ideas to percolate through here. For me, I learned early on that I could choose which emotions to feel. We, as adults with adult language, perception, and constructs, can choose what we experience and feel. Where Byron and I agree is on the point of what we believe creates our reality.

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Well, Byron takes us to HIS theory, what he class the Baby Theory. In short: Babies cry to get their needs met. Babies learn that by feeling bad, they\u2019re comforted. And therefore, they take the syllogistic tree (If/Then) to the emotional place of \u201cIf I feel bad, I\u2019ll get the comfort I need.\u201d He sees \u201cbad\u201d emotions as manipulative.

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And I\u2019m not so sure I agree with him. Still, he\u2019s an agreeable person and it was an amazing conversation. I invite you to tune in.

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For more from Byron, go to www.ByronAthene.com

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And check his article here: https://www.brainzmagazine.com/post/why-do-we-feel-bad