The human mind has an incredible capacity for time travel. It can also get “trapped” during these journeys. For example, perhaps something bad or even traumatic happened to you at a particular age. Your mind may often transport you back to that time. When that happens, it’s because you are emotionally stuck. You’re still living out the experience and feeling the related emotions.
This is particularly common when connected to childhood traumas. As an emotionally stuck adult, you might realize you don’t trust yourself. You lack that “gut instinct” to guide you. Fortunately, there are steps you can take to reclaim your personal power.
Name Your Emotions
In the throes of a difficult situation, you will feel a wide range of emotions. However, it’s not exactly easy to identify them. Even as years go by, you may have trouble understanding what it is that happened to you inside. A major step toward getting emotionally unstuck is to better understand what you’re feeling. This might involve trying to separate what you feel. For example, dig deep to discern if you’re confusing anger for grief or fear for guilt, and so on.
This kind of delineation allows you to address and process emotions one at a time. Also, as you learn how to name your emotions, try to recognize where the root causes and issues lie. Such work is more easily facilitated in the presence of a skilled therapist.
4 More Things You Can Do to Finally Get Emotionally Unstuck
1. Set Your Intentions
Honor this process. Set aside quality time. Find a place in which you will not be distracted. What you are doing is reconnecting with your inner voice. You deserve patience and self-compassion. So, turn your awakening into something sacred. Set the intention to develop trust in yourself and your ability to navigate the inevitable emotional ups and downs of life.
2. Practice Mindfulness
Right now, you’re living in the past. Events that happened long ago are ruling your mindset. You recognize it and you’re ready to evolve. Situating yourself in the present moment is an important step. Mindfulness brings you out of the past and empowers you to let it go. From this position, you will find yourself more open to new ideas and perspectives.
3. Start Small
You’ve named your emotions and increased your mindfulness. Now what? Well, resist the urge to skip steps. Create small changes in your life. It could be, for example, alterations to your daily routine and/or your living space. These little steps add up. They also give you time to assess and adjust.
4. Outline Big Changes
As you progress through your little steps, you can begin to visualize the big picture. What are these changes moving toward? Do you have a goal, purpose, or mission in mind? The idea here is to recognize that you are the architect of your choices, behaviors, values, and beliefs. You may want to start pondering fundamental topics like:
- The activities, people, and ideas that lift you up
- Favorite things from before the traumatic experience
- Favorite things now (and they intersect with previous favorites)
- People who motivate and inspire you
- Your unique skills and gifts
- Ask yourself what gives you confidence
Healing and Recovery
Getting emotionally unstuck is a journey of self-discovery and self-love. You discover and re-discover what it feels like to be optimistic and hopeful. In addition, you learn how to believe in yourself. I worked with many people who have taken this journey. I’d love to help and support you, too.
If you feel stuck and are ready for a meaningful change, let’s talk soon. Please read more about women’s counseling and let’s connect for a confidential consultation.
