Emotions and Trauma: How Unprocessed Feelings Keep Us Stuck in the Past
Have you ever experienced this? You have no idea what's going on, and then you suddenly start crying? Did you ever find yourself crying for "no" reason? You're not alone if you have.
We can put up a brave front and keep a variety of feelings from other people, but it's far more difficult to hide them when they show up as "seemingly out of nowhere" tears. It's not only inconvenient. It can be really puzzling. Let’s explore how unprocessed emotions keeps you stuck in the past.
What is it Called When You Don't Process Emotions?
"Unprocessed Emotions" or repressed emotions is a term used when a person is not fully aware, recognised, or reacted to the disturbed sentiments. Often linked to psychological trauma a person faced in the past.
Additionally, suppressed emotions might result in:
Ignoring or rejecting emotions
Refusing to communicate
Avoiding contact with distrust
How Do I Know If I Have Repressed Emotions?
Unprocessed emotions are not the same as "pangs" of grief, which sometimes occur unexpectedly but are abrupt surges of pain or longing associated with a particular loss. These aspects of loss are to be expected. Unprocessed emotions involving fear, anxiety, wrath, or grief.
Recall moments of disappointment or loss. You didn't always have the time, opportunity, or willingness to reflect on how these experiences impacted you. Despite your sadness, you had to concentrate on other necessary tasks of your life. You lost a loved one, but had to "be strong" and organise the deceased's affairs and funeral. You have probably encountered some challenges in your life when changing professions, having children, or completing your education. Sometimes we are unable to handle situations when they arise.
What Happens When You Bottle Up Your Emotions for Too Long?
Unresolved emotions accumulate over time. For instance, air will eventually escape through a tire's small leak because the pressure inside the tire is higher than the air pressure outside. The same is true for unprocessed, stored-up emotions. When the internal pressure is higher than the external pressure, the pressure escapes via the weakest point for "no" obvious explanation, sometimes when you're alone or trying to fall asleep.
If someone has betrayed our confidence, caused us to question their good intentions, or damaged our self-esteem, we are still motivated to run away from a truthful acknowledgement of a terrible level of vulnerability and exposure. We mentally numb ourselves or adopt a purposefully non-specific tone of unprocessed emotions. That tone conceals the specific damage that has been inflicted on us. On the outside, we adopt a jolly, cheerful personality to hide our unresolved emotions. This blocked our emotional healing process and kept us stuck in our painful past.
How to Release Repressed Emotions?
Trauma recovery is never possible if you are suffering from unresolved emotions. To release unprocessed emotions, a person can work on several factors along with therapeutic assistance.
Overcome your insecurities: The first step to achieve emotional healing is to find which event kept you stuck and resulted in your unprocessed emotions. You can only be overcome and controlled by things that are not inside your consciousness. Your old emotions won't be as upsetting and confusing once you have command of your consciousness.
Write it down
Examine and write down your thoughts during those times and your beliefs about those unprocessed emotions. Be unbiased in how you interpret the incident and validate any feelings that arise from it. To make your writing more clear, use "I" sentences, such as "I feel worried." Accept and let go of things that are beyond your control. Not judging or censoring what you write is perhaps the most important part of writing it down. The process must be entirely unfiltered.
Take command
You have the freedom to decide how to respond to your emotions once you are aware of them. You have the power to deal with them in a way that is both healthy and productive. Give your emotions a name and start investigating what causes them.
Recognise and work through your emotion
You can now confront the emotions you have long suppressed. Let them in, but keep in mind that you are not under the control of your unprocessed emotions. Start analysing your childhood stories and memories to achieve inner child healing.
Take It Easy.
Yoga and other mindful activities are effective for fighting with your unresolved emotions. Muscle tightness can be brought to light by sitting still and paying attention to your breathing. Perhaps your foot is doing that bouncy, nervous thing, or your shoulders are raised. Mindfully practicing stillness and calmness in the moment might help make sense of emotional responses that "come out of the blue."
Be mindful and assume accountability
Start identifying which emotions are fresh and which are old. This step helps you to find which one is making more intense unprocessed emotions.
Learn more about inner child healing
Most of us are unaware that we might have been emotionally neglected in our childhood. Childhood negligence is much more prevalent than you might imagine. Learning how to manage your unresolved emotions in a way that promotes emotional healing.
Seek Professional Assistance: To learn coping skills and find underlying issues, consider seeking treatment from a qualified therapist. Unprocessed emotions can escape internal tensions by crying for "no" reason. Seeking mental therapy could be beneficial for anyone struggling from moderate psychological trauma.
Conclusion
Unprocessed emotions can be identified as a person may not even be aware that he has suppressed feelings resulting from some past “Bad” experiences. It can be explained as you tend to automatically avoid negative emotions if you struggle in relationships or find them uncomfortable.
Consulting a qualified therapist is the most effective technique to learn how to control your emotions. They can assist you in comprehending your emotions. They can also educate you how to communicate more effectively and handle conflict. You can also work on self-expression on your own. First, try the above given advice by yourself, and then with a qualified therapist to free yourself from your painful past.
