05/06/2026
When I encourage clients to sit with their feelings, they often look at me and ask, "But what does that actually mean?"
I think many of us have been taught that difficult emotions are something to get rid of as quickly as possible. We distract ourselves, stay busy, overthink, scroll, work harder, or tell ourselves we'll deal with it another day.
But feelings don't disappear simply because we don't want them there.
I often think of emotions like waves.
When a feeling first arrives, it can be uncomfortable, but it's usually manageable. Like standing at the edge of the sea and feeling a wave wash around your ankles. You notice it. You feel it. You allow it to be there.
The difficulty comes when we spend our energy trying to outrun every wave.
The wave doesn't stop coming. Another follows behind it, and then another. Over time, stress, sadness, disappointment, fear, frustration and worry can begin to build on top of one another until eventually we're hit by something that feels overwhelming.
This is why sitting with your feelings isn't about dwelling on them or making yourself feel worse.
It's about giving yourself permission to notice what's there, with curiosity rather than judgement.
To acknowledge what you're feeling.
To make space for it.
To trust that emotions do what waves naturally do.
They rise.
They peak.
And, when we're willing to let them, they pass. 🌊
What feeling might be asking for a little space and attention today?
