I hope you know that there's a definition coming in all this. Who would I be if I didn't define the term before talking about it?
Ok. So emotion. It's defined by Merriam Webster Online as "a conscious mental reaction (as anger or fear) subjectively experienced as strong feeling usually directed toward a specific object and typically accompanied by physiological and behavioral changes in the body". Now think about this for a second. When you're "feeling some kind of way about something", no matter what the something, your body goes through changes. Perhaps your skin gets hot, either from blushing or from anger. If you're like me, you get the butterflies in your stomach (and that's whether it's a good thing or a bad thing) and you feel a certain level of anxiety. It could be that you appear to be outwardly ambivalent when in reality you are two seconds from exploding (again, be it a good way or a bad way).
Emotions are a hell of a thing. The behavioral response that comes with the reaction to something, that 'thing' that evokes an emotion, can be paralyzing sometimes, depending on how strongly you feel about it. You could be digging someone and get the quiet brush off, causing feelings of inadequacy and "what did I do wrong?" Physiologically, your body could feel downtrodden and tired, depending on the level of 'in like' you were with the person. But that feeling isn't just limited to relationships. It could be the fear of stepping out on faith to pursue a dream. Fear can be such a paralyzing emotion that it can keep you trapped in a dead end job because you're afraid to dream. Paranoia as an emotion can cause you to think everyone is out to get you when in reality, they could simply be experiencing growing pains. As Ms. Simon noted once, the song might not even be about you.
Emotions are no joke, and they extend far beyond the reach of the average human relationship. Many in politics react based on emotion versus focusing on the actual facts surrounding a situation. Emotions have been known to cause normally reasonably minded people to eschew basic foundations and fundamental principles, such as ignoring Constitutional rights for the sake of cultural sensitivity. Hell, the last presidential race was one ball of emotion - many Americans used their personal issues and sensibilities regarding race and ethnicity to help them determine the next President, only to hand him to the proverbial wolves when they were dissatisfied with his current results.
Emotions are a hell of a thing.
Is there something to do about it? Not really. The challenge with emotions are that they are what make us inherently human, for lack of a catchy yet appropriate cliche. For me, my ability to reason through my emotions, for the most part, is what makes me uniquely me. Conversely, when I reach a point of temporary emotional overload, I'm miserable. I don't like being emotional...or vulnerable. It's not for me.
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