4 Steps to Release Heavy Emotions
Emotions are a good thing! Allowing yourself to feel them is an essential part of processing emotions. It is when we sit with those feelings for too long, or just avoid feeling them altogether, that is when heavy emotional loads get stored in the body. Which is toxic for us!
One of the key factors in being healthy and balanced is to keep our emotions in balance too. Our physical body is affected by our emotional state, our mental state is affected by emotions, and vice versa. Here is the essential 4 step process to release and transform heavy emotions:
1. Acknowledge
Identify and acknowledge the emotion you are feeling. Allow yourself to understand that your feelings are 100% valid. If you don’t necessarily know where the emotion is coming from it’s ok!
2. Feel Into the Emotion
An essential part of processing emotions is to feel them. Allow yourself the time and space to really feel the emotion that is coming up for you. It may not be comfortable to do this, but this is part of the release process.
3. Release & Transform
Releasing an emotion is, in essence, transforming the heavy emotional energy into something else. There are many ways to do this - pick one, or several!
crying (an excellent way to release!)
expressing or communicating the emotion (to yourself first, and maybe also to someone else) - this can be through writing, journaling or speaking
vocalize (SCREAM or SING!), perhaps not screaming AT someone, but going outside into nature and releasing it into your voice, or screaming into a pillow works!)
exercise (with purpose!)
cleansing breaths (inhaling through your nose and exhaling with your mouth)
visualizing it being transformed and released from your body (qigong)
deep breathwork (conscious circular breathwork or other styles which alter your state of mind to let you access and release the emotional energy stored deep in your body)
dance! Using free flow movement as a way to express, transform and release
energy healing - book in for a session to have an experienced Energy Healer assist you in releasing stuck emotions.
Choose what works for you! I use all of these methods myself and with my clients, depending on what I feel I need, and feels the most natural at the time.
4. Replace the Heavy Emotion with a Positive One
Set your intention for what you would like to replace the heavy emotion with. You may choose love, joy, compassion, gratitude, peacefulness etc. For example, a gratitude practice, where you acknowledge the things you are grateful for will enhance the positive emotions and energy in the body. Another example would be to choose to feel compassion for yourself or someone else.
Emotions are energy. The positive ones (joy, happiness, peace, love…) feel lighter and are healing to the body, mind and soul. When you remind yourself of a time when you felt joy, peace, love, and choose to spend time reflecting on that, it can also shift and transform the heavier emotions (sadness, grief, anger, fear…).
So there you go! Emotions may feel complex, and they may come from a number of places such as experiences, memories and triggers to old emotions. When they come up, pay attention to them as they are telling you something. These emotions WANT to be processed, released and transformed. Go through these steps, and you will notice that your attachment to that emotion will be less and less over time. As always, be patient and compassionate with yourself - for that, in itself, will shift your energy to the lighter, more positive side of emotional balance:)
Love,
Randa