Foundational 50 - #6 Emotional Release

Foundational Fifty - 50 Days to Meeting Your Needs

#6. Emotional Release

“We humans are full of unpredictable emotions that logic cannot solve.”
-Capt. James T. Kirk, Star Trek

Take the necessary moments to nurture your emotions every day. Spend time alone and allow yourself to feel the sadness, fear, relief, anxiety and excitement of your day. These often-complex emotions are indicators that signal the feeling side of us and communicate that movement and growth is necessary, much like a bud emerging on a vine. Emotional release is our ability to surrender to the emotional expressions of our lives.

Many of us grew up in homes where the rule was not to feel, and we held in our pain until we became numb to what was around us. Avoiding our emotions will keep us stuck. Opening the door to release brings forth our joy... and our vulnerability. In the safety of a friend or a supportive person we can begin to shed the armor that has both protected us and blocked our growth.

As we play, make love, cry, listen to music, work on a project, build something, play a musical instrument, create art, write, sculpt or get a massage, we release our emotions. When we are emotionally open during the transition of change, we receive the necessary ingredients to let go of the past and find our voice to fulfill our most important needs.

What emotion do you want to release: anger, sadness, bewilderment, hurt, excitement?

Describe how you release your emotions:

Emotional Release

UNFULFILLED

Feel bound up with emotion. Realize we are having an emotional response to a situation, after an event has occurred. Avoid situations for fear we will break down and cry, explode with anger or run away because of our fear. The emotions may be emerging after many years in hiding.

SATISFIED

Feel our emotions in the moment and are able to find release. We give ourselves permission to cry. We take the time to identify what we are feeling and can share it with others safely.

TRY THIS:

* Draw, paint, sculpt or write about your emotions.
* Get or give a massage, relax and let go.
* Listen to music, dance! Sing, or just sweat!
* Write your feelings in your journal .

Rate your ability to release your emotions safely on a scale of 1-10:

When is the last time you sat down and had a good cry to release the emotional hurts you've been collecting?

Alcohol and drug abuse recovery includes getting in touch with the emotional side of yourself.