Negative emotions such as anger, fear, and sadness, which come from the limbic system in the brain, can flood into you in certain situations. It takes a few seconds for your prefrontal cortex to catch up to the limbic system and make a decision on how to react. People who are impulsive and reactive don't give enough time for their prefrontal cortex to catch up, leading to bad decisions and apologies. To make better decisions and be less reactive, it's important to always put time between what you feel and what you do, becoming metacognitive.