Emotional baggage is unprocessed trauma that can be stigmatizing as it generally tends to have negative connotations.
Often in life, we fail to let go of certain situations and problems and accumulate emotional baggage that refers to unfinished emotional issues, stressors, pain and difficulties. According to experts, these feelings can continue to occupy space in our minds for a long time and affect current relationships.
Psychologists refer to emotional baggage as unprocessed trauma, which can be stigmatizing because it often has negative connotations. Trapped emotions can therefore affect:
- The way you think about yourself
- The way you react to stress and other mental health issues.
- Your physical well-being
- Your relationships with others
- Emotional baggage can affect you physically
Experts say the trauma of storing or trapping emotions can also have a long-term physical effect. Symptoms of traumatic stress manifest at a subconscious level, leading to anxiety or depression in some people, or a fight-flight-freeze response in many others.
Negative emotional energy is also expressed as:
- Resentment against a person or feelings
- Not being able to make decisions
- self-sabotage
- Always overreacting
- Always tired and feeling tired
Many therapists also compare trapped emotions to carrying a large backpack, which weighs you down, affects your mood, and drains your energy.
How to release your emotional baggage?
While it’s not difficult to release your inner feelings, it’s not that easy either. While you can cry, scream, laugh, punch a pillow, or dance, you can also bury your pain and move on. However, over time, this leads to repressed emotions, also known as unconscious avoidance.
According to studies, there is a link between emotional repression and decreased immune system function. So, to feel light and healthy, some ways to release your repressed feelings include:
Recognizing your feelings
As a first step, it’s important to understand your emotions so you can let them go. Experts say that those with repressed emotions may have trouble identifying their feelings, so it can be valuable to talk to a mental health professional.
Working through trauma
Traumas from the past can always bring you back to your past, no matter how much love you have for the future. Often, there are things that one carries with them for years, such as abuse, neglect, loss of a loved one, separation, or even bullying.
To overcome trauma, experts recommend that it is important to first feel the pain and then let it go.
Try working with shadows
According to experts, shadow work helps you explore different parts of yourself that you may hide from the rest of the world due to shame, fear, or lack of acceptance.
Perform intentional movements
Intentional movements are somatic experiences that experts say are simple ways to address any unprocessed tension or emotion that may be present in the body.
To release these feelings, you can do activities such as dancing, yoga or martial arts.
Practicing stillness
Stillness is one of the best ways to clearly understand your thoughts and feelings in the present state. It helps access your brain’s default mode, which triggers self-generated cognition, including things like daydreaming.
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