How to Process Your Feelings

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Written By Luke Bieber

It’s Less Complicated Than You Might Think

My goal here is to give you a place to get started when it comes to working through big feelings. Some of us are big feelers. That’s okay. Exercises like these can help us move through heavy emotional states far more quickly. Most of us were never taught how to do this. So, here is the simplest version this psychologist has found.

There is an audio version of this posted below if you’d rather listen to me narrate the process while you work through it. You got this.

Time to Process

Here is a guide to help process your feelings and help your body to put down the emotional weight it has been carrying.

  • Find a safe and quite place to sit or lie down. 

  • Take three deep breaths at your own pace.

  • Now, ask yourself, would you expect to be feeling anything in particular given what’s been happening in your life?

    • Take a look at the emotion wheel that I’ve shared with you to help you in this process

  • Close your eyes and take at least five deep breaths

  • Then, in the stillness, notice any physical sensations or signs of those particular feelings

You may look at areas such as your heart, stomach, throat, and eyes. But, we carry our emotions in all different parts of our bodies.

Next, place your hand on whatever part of your body seems to be carrying those feelings.

  • If they are there, lean into them.  Notice that part of your body that seems to be carrying that emotional weight

  • I ask that you sit with any feelings that come up for several minutes or as long as there is a strong feeling present

    • Lastly, if it feels quite heavy to lean into piece of you, feel free to put it down with the intention of coming back to it later when you can make more time for it

You should know if this was effective by simply feeling lighter. If the feelings you just sat with were a lot to manage, I strongly encourage getting your body moving. Emotions are just as physical as they are emotional. Movement helps us to process the hormones that come with those big feelings.

For anything I post, it may not work for you. That’s okay. Please keep searching. There are lots of options and quality resources out there.

Written by Dr. Luke Bieber on June 6, 2025

Luke Bieber