Psychology/Emotions/The intensity curve

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Emotions

The intensity curve

Every episode has five points, and the strategy that works at point two is useless at point four. Matching the tool to the point on the curve is the whole skill.

Point What is happening What helps here What does not
1 · Conditions Sleep, food, load, noise, unresolved conflict. Subtraction and scheduling. Insight — there is no episode yet to think about.
2 · Early rise First body signal. Attention narrowing. Naming, slow exhale, movement, stepping out for two minutes. Nothing — this is the cheapest point to act, and the easiest to miss.
3 · Steep rise Impulse is loud. Thought is one-sided. Delay, distance, temperature change, saying “I need a minute”. Complex reasoning. Difficult conversations. Decisions.
4 · Peak Very little deliberate control available. Safety, waiting it out, doing no harm. Analysis, negotiation, self-improvement.
5 · Descent and after Capacity returns; the episode becomes reviewable. Recording, repair, learning, planning the next attempt. Pretending it did not happen — or replaying it for hours.

Two strategies per point, on one card

A strategy you cannot recall at point three is not a strategy. Choose two for each point, write them on a single physical card, and keep the card where the episodes actually happen — desk, wallet, phone case, kitchen.

Point 1 · Conditions

  • Protect sleep before protecting productivity.
  • Eat on a schedule rather than on demand.
  • Cut one recurring commitment. Awareness does not compensate for a genuinely overloaded week.
  • Close one open conflict per week; unfinished conversations run in the background.

Point 2 · Early rise

  • Name it silently, in one precise word.
  • Lengthen the exhale — in for four, out for six or eight, for one minute.
  • Leave the room for two minutes with a reason.
  • Write the sentence down. On paper it is a claim; in your head it is the truth.

Point 3 · Steep rise

  • Delay the response by a fixed period you say out loud.
  • Write the message and do not send it.
  • Change temperature, posture or altitude.
  • Postpone every decision. Nothing decided at point three has ever needed to be.

Point 4 · Peak

  • Reduce input — quieter, darker, fewer people, no screens.
  • Do nothing irreversible.
  • Stay physically safe and keep others safe. That is the entire goal at this point.
  • If there is any risk of harm, stop and contact emergency services or a crisis line.

Point 5 · Descent and after

  • Rehydrate, eat and rest before reviewing anything.
  • Debrief at least two hours later — never during.
  • Make one repair, small and specific, without a speech attached.
  • Record the earliest signal you can now identify. That is the target for next time.

Where self-reflection stops

If intensity does not fall, if episodes increase over weeks, if daily activities become difficult, or if there is any thought of harming yourself or anyone else, the correct next step is a qualified professional — not another four weeks of logging.

Bringing your completed records to that conversation will make it substantially more useful, and that is a legitimate and valuable use of these resources.

The full workbook

A twenty-eight day programme with the NAME sequence, a body map, daily logs, episode debriefs, a thirty-two strategy library and four weekly reviews.

View the resource

Educational scope. Everything published on PMA Science Psychology is provided for education, study and professional documentation. Nothing here is a diagnostic instrument, a psychometric test, or a substitute for assessment, treatment, supervision or emergency care by a qualified professional.

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