The Change Triangle Explained: A Practical Guide to Emotional Health [Video]

In this video, Don McCarthy explains the Change Triangle. It is a model created by Hilary Jacobs Hendel to help people understand emotional health. The Change Triangle is an upside-down triangle with three main points: defenses, inhibitory emotions, and core emotions. Defenses are the behaviors we use to avoid uncomfortable feelings, such as overworking, overthinking, or using substances. Inhibitory emotions, like anxiety, guilt, and shame, block access to our core emotions. This is to protect us from overwhelming experiences or potential conflict in relationships. Core emotions, such as sadness, joy, anger, fear, excitement, sexual excitement, and disgust, arise naturally in the body in response to our environment and provide valuable information about our needs and experiences.

The goal of the Change Triangle is to help people move from distress to a calm, authentic state characterized by clarity, confidence, compassion, and courage. Subsequently, by slowing down, naming emotions without judgment, and understanding where we are on the triangle, we can process feelings more effectively and return to balance. The process involves moving clockwise around the triangle, identifying defenses, noticing inhibitory emotions, and then accessing and validating core emotions, before reaching the “open-hearted state.” This state allows for healthier responses to life’s challenges and a stronger sense of self. Using the triangle regularly can improve emotional health, increase self-awareness, and enhance our ability to handle difficult situations.