You can contain difficult feelings until you are ready to work on them.

We all deal with a lot of negative feelings we’d rather get rid of - stress & anxiety, fear, anger, irritation, etc. What if I told you there was a way you could contain upsetting feelings till you are ready to work through them? In this container exercise, I walk you through the steps for noticing distress in your body and containing it.

Sometimes you need a break from all of the tough feelings

The idea behind this exercise is not to change the actual circumstances of your life. It won’t change how you feel forever. Ultimately, it is impossible to take out all of the stressors, trauma, and difficult circumstances life throws at you. But there are things you can do when you just don’t want to deal with problems at the moment. We all need moments of reprieve to feel safe, calm, and at peace even amid hard times. The container exercise is perfect for that. It will help you feel lighter.

Learn to gain control when you’re overwhelmed

This technique is often used in trauma therapy. It involves doing a visualization where you notice where you are storing hard feelings in your body and then imagine putting your distressing feelings away in a container that is safe and secure but away from you. That way, you can still come back to the feelings and work through them when the time is right, but you don’t feel flooded by distressing feelings when the time isn’t right. It gives you a little bit more control — something I think we all crave.

I recorded a video to walk you through the steps of using a container to feel better. I hope it’s useful to you!

We hope you find these resources helpful! If you are struggling with loneliness, conflict, or anxiety, speaking to a professional counselor in Houston can help.

Contact us at Wilson Counseling to find out more about our services or to schedule an appointment. You can find out more about Edmr counseling here. You don't have to go through this alone. We are in this together.

The advice in this blog is not a substitute for professional counseling.