Moving Through Emotions: Releasing - Pt. 2

Grounding emotions is the first step. But feeling them isn't always enough. Lingering, unreleased emotions quietly mold our thoughts, reactions, and relationships. 

Emotions are energy within our bodies. If we do not release them, they do not just disappear but they enter our subconscious and can influence our thoughts, behaviors and physical health. They enter our relationships in subtle or destructive ways.

Why Releasing is Essential?

Beyond influencing our decisions and health, unprocessed emotions attract more of the same emotions. This can show up as heightened reactivity in new situations or reliving old emotions in new forms. In fact, this can become our baseline.

Much like clearing mud from a diamond, releasing emotions lets our energy flow freely again.

Releasing intense or old feelings clears our mental fog. It helps us return with fresh eyes to the current moment, seeing things more clearly and making better decisions - not from a place of past pain or reactivity.

We release to make space for lighter feelings - like gratitude, connection, peace, and joy.

These are our natural state. The more space we create through releasing our emotions rather than trying to override them, the more we can connect to our true nature. Our connection to our true nature lets us choose and respond to our world from our inner compass instead of past pain or future fear.

Article: Look Up To The Light

Processing and releasing emotions helps us to build better relationships and deepen our trust in our own system.

When Emotions Get Stuck

We need to release emotions if we are feeling:

• Tension in the body, like tightness or physical ailments without a obvious cause

• Our mood is irritable, anxious or low

• Suddenly overreacting to small things - whether it feels justified in the moment

• Avoidance of silence, confrontation or specific people

• Numbing out (scrolling, drinking, overeating, overworking)

• People-pleasing or withdrawing

• Obsessive thoughts

How do you know if you aren't releasing?

• The emotion keeps coming back in waves, but nothing truly shifts

• You "talk about it" over and over but still feel tight, stuck, or heavy

• You feel like there is something lingering in your chest, gut, or throat

• You may cry, but you don't feel lighter after

• You repeat the same emotional patterns in different situations (for example, feeling sad about many experiences) without resolution

• You feel like you're "carrying" something but can't name what it is

Safety Makes Release Possible

Once you ground an emotion, you can choose to release the emotion. Releasing is what allows us to move forward emotionally and shift to something new.

Releasing requires a felt sense of safety. We can't force an emotion to leave, but with the grounding work our body knows we are not in danger. Then the body is softer and lets go - naturally and gently.

There are many ways to release an emotion, and you should use what speaks to you. The key is to be focused on the emotion and intentionally look to let it go.

Six Ways To Release Emotions (Pick What Resonates)

1. Make it physical - move your body. 

   When you're feeling angry, anxious, or low, shake your arms, bounce, stretch, dance, scream into a towel.

2. Use your voice or sound. 

   You can release pressure, rage, grief, and overwhelm through your throat. Sigh, sing, cry, or speak it out loud.

3. Let yourself cry. 

   Crying is a big release for sadness, grief, heartbreak and shame.

4. Write it out.

   For mental loops, unspoken truths or emotional clarity, writing out your thoughts can be very helpful. It moves it from the emotional part of the brain to the logical part and helps to release.

5. Use Water or Ritual. 

   For shaking off a bad day, moving through changes or feeling like you need a reset, taking a shower or a bath with intention rinses off.

6. Breathe & Witness.

   When you feel out of sorts or highly sensitive, deep audible exhales, sitting with your breath or hand on your heart can help you come into the moment and settle down.

Emotions are not the enemy. They communicate with us if we're willing to listen and learn.

Emotions are not the enemy. They are messengers inviting us to notice, feel, and let go.

They don't need to be fixed. They just need to be felt and freed.

The more you practice releasing, the more space you create for clarity, connection, and truth. Let the body speak. Let the energy move. And trust: you have the power to release the emotions that are no longer serving you.