People feel many different feelings during a day. Feelings happen when something happens around us or when we remember something. Feelings can be small or big. Most feelings do not last long. Feelings happen in the brain and the body, and many parts of the brain work together to make an emotion. Everybody has feelings, and all feelings are okay. Feelings like happy, sad, angry and afraid are normal. No feeling is simply good or bad.

People show their feelings with their faces and bodies. People sometimes cry when they feel sad. Babies cry to tell people what they need. Around two months old, a baby starts to smile to connect with other people. With practice, people get better at knowing what they are feeling.

Two parts of the brain have jobs here. The amygdala is a small, almond-shaped part of the brain. It works like an alarm that helps protect the body from danger. The prefrontal cortex, at the front of the brain, has a job too. It helps people pause, think and choose what to do. Emotion regulation means changing or managing your feelings.

Emotions have helped people survive. Fear helps keep people safe by getting the body ready to get away from danger. In the fight-or-flight response, the body gets ready to face danger or run from it. Your heart can beat faster when you are scared or angry. When you feel afraid, your breathing can speed up. After danger has passed, the parasympathetic nervous system helps the body settle back to calm.

There are ways to calm down. Deep breathing is one. Breathe in through the nose and out through the mouth. Pretending to smell a flower and blow out a candle helps children take slow breaths. In a Stanford study, one minute of guided slow breathing lowered the heart rates of children about seven years old. Feeling listened to and understood can help a person calm down too.

Words to know

• amygdala: brain's alarm
• regulation: managing it
• parasympathetic: calming system
• prefrontal: front brain
• emotion: a feeling