Quick question.
When was the last time you felt so much pain in your heart that you had to suppress your emotions because, otherwise, you might have never stopped crying?
I’d bet many of us tend to do that.
According to therapist, coach, and host of The Adult Chair Podcast Michelle Chalfant, a lot of us have a good understanding of being physically healthy. However, when it comes to emotional health, we as humans aren’t great at it.
Turn Toward the Pain
Now, when you try to temporarily pause and then hit play again the moment all of the effects wear off, all of a sudden you’re back in it and the pain is right there again. In order to break free from that cycle, you have to learn how to turn toward the pain. Get to know your pain and learn how to feel your emotions. Slow down, turn toward it, and get curious.
But what do you do when you can’t even identify your emotions?
How to Connect with Your Emotions
When you don’t know what emotion you’re feeling, at least try to explore its physical sensation. For instance, maybe you can’t tell if you feel sad but just feel that tiny bit of twang inside your stomach. You don’t have to know what that exact emotion is. You just know something’s in there and that’s okay.
It’s energy moving through you and you can just start from there. Go there and you’ll see it all start to morph. Sometimes, it gets bigger – not scarier, but bigger. From there, it morphs, it transforms, and then it’s gone!
Then, suddenly you’ll realize that your emotions are not something to be afraid of after all because you’ll learn to let those feelings come through and to make friends with your emotions.
The Adult Chair Model
The Adult Chair Model is a manual for life that helps you learn how to feel your emotions, something that many of us have not been taught to do well. When you begin to live with compassion, boundaries, and empowerment, and when you’re connected to your emotions instead of reacting to them, you turn into an emotionally healthy adult and become the most authentic version of yourself.
If you want to learn more about how you can heal from trauma through The Adult Chair Model, check out Episode 147: How to Sit in Your Adult Chair to Become the Most Authentic Version of Yourself with Michelle Chalfant.