Feeling is Healing

Stress is a common issue in this challenging, fast-paced world. The pressure of juggling responsibilities, meeting expectations, and keeping up with a demanding lifestyle can leave us feeling overwhelmed. When we feel like we can’t cope, stress and anxiety take hold.

Unfortunately, many people try to manage stress by self-medicating—turning to alcohol, drugs, excessive work, sex, food, gambling, or other temporary distractions. But this is short-term relief, and won’t solve the problem. In fact, they make it worse because it leads to addiction, health issues, and emotional distress. At the core of it all, our unprocessed feelings are demanding to be acknowledged.

There’s a problem with suppressing our feelings. It’s easy to embrace positive emotions like excitement for a vacation, joy at the birth of a child, or enthusiasm for a new job. But negative emotions—such as fear, sadness, or frustration—tend to get pushed aside. We tell ourselves to stay positive and suppress uncomfortable feelings, but this only causes them to build up beneath the surface.

Think of emotions like a jack-in-the-box. If you keep forcing the lid shut, they don’t disappear—they just build more pressure. Eventually, they pop up again, and in ways that are harder to manage. Suppressed emotions can lead to anxiety, stress-related illnesses, and self-destructive habits.

There are two ways I’ve found useful when it comes to lowering your stress levels.

1. Acknowledge Your Feelings

The next time you feel uneasy, afraid, or stressed, don’t ignore it. Your emotions are messages from your instincts, trying to communicate with you. When you suppress feelings, they don’t go away—they simply go underground, creating internal tension that can eventually manifest as physical health problems.

Imagine an underground volcano. If pressure keeps building without release, it eventually erupts, causing destruction. The same thing happens with your suppressed emotions—they can lead to breakdowns, emotional outbursts, or chronic stress-related illnesses.

2. Seek Support

If facing your emotions alone feels overwhelming, reach out for help. A therapist, counselor, or even a trusted friend can provide support and guidance as you process difficult emotions. Having someone to listen and validate your feelings can make a huge difference.

There are consequences to be faced when we ignore our feelings. When you ignore your emotions, your subconscious finds ways to bring them to the surface—often by creating situations that force you to feel them. For example, if you continuously ignore feelings of pressure or anxiety, you may keep finding yourself in stressful jobs, overwhelming relationships, or high-pressure situations. This is not a coincidence—your subconscious is trying to get your attention, pushing you to address what you’ve been avoiding.

The solution? Feel your feelings. Instead of running from them, allow yourself to experience them fully.

How to Process and Release Stress

At the start of each day—or anytime stress builds up—take a few moments to check in with yourself.

1. Acknowledge what you’re feeling – Don’t push emotions away. If you’re angry, frustrated, or sad, allow yourself to recognise it.
2. Breathe deeply – Inhale slowly and deeply, then exhale fully, releasing any tension. Repeat as needed, always breathing in a natural rhythm.
3. Sit with your emotions – Instead of distracting yourself, give yourself permission to fully feel what’s there. The discomfort will pass.
4. Let go – Once you’ve acknowledged and felt your emotions, release them. With every exhale, imagine stress leaving your body.

This type of practice can quickly ease stress and bring a sense of relief and calm so you can break the cycle of stress. When you make it a habit to process your emotions rather than suppress them, stress and anxiety lose their hold over you. You stop attracting negative situations that mirror your unresolved feelings, and you can begin to break free from self-sabotaging patterns.

The truth is, feeling is healing. The more you allow yourself to go through the motion of emotions, the less they will control you. Instead of living in a cycle of stress, you’ll create a life that feels lighter, freer, and more balanced.