There's a lot of talk about "processing emotions" and most of it is frankly unhelpful. As someone who used to suffer from depression a lot, dealing with heavy emotions has been an important topic in my life. I've found that most of what people do to "process" emotions is really just avoiding emotions, with extra steps.
I've also found that NOT processing emotions comes at a steep cost. We become emotionally bogged down and it becomes a burden on all aspects of life. Also, this all starts way further back, when we make the mistake of being overly attached to labels of "good" and "bad" emotions.
In this video, I share what DOESN'T work as well as the only thing I've ever found that DOES actually work for processing emotions and relieving yourself from that emotional burden.
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00:00 Intro
01:17 The Conveyor Belt of Emotions
02:09 The most unhelpful story about emotions
04:13 Should you feel bad about your "bad" emotions?
07:00 The same emotions keep coming around
08:37 Why process emotions?
09:50 The dreaded quiet evening hours
11:44 Numbing as a response to emotions
12:25 The problem of pseudo-therapy in everyday life
16:06 "Processing" but actually avoiding
17:00 Breathwork and nervous system regulation
18:25 Somatic processing
20:04 The only thing that actually works
20:38 Example of "opening the box"
23:08 The internal motion of non-resistance
25:01 How to tell that real processing has happened
25:58 Thankfully, we have grief
27:34 My experience of learning the process
28:37 Thankfully, we have fear
29:33 Letting go of resistance
32:09 What about the REALLY BAD emotions?
34:40 Different ways to open the box
36:29 The Surprise Factor
37:43 Feeling happy for no reason at all
39:19 The long term effects are pretty great
41:40 How much joy do you allow in your life?
43:47 My attempt to change your life
46:35 Introspective Writing as a tool for awareness