“And how do you feel about that?” – the classic line of any psychologist in any movie you’ve probably seen.

“Cringe!” – you might think. “Really? A psychologist talking about feelings… Predictable.”

And I don’t normally think we should buy into stereotypes but this one is kind of true…

Not in the way that it’s simplified in the movies but its definitely something therapists ask clients often – and for good reason.

That’s because we often don’t actually ask ourselves this question! This can be for many reasons, but often it’s because emotions can be painful and sometimes we’d rather not feel them… It’s understandable!

But this is a reminder that all feelings are normal and valid – yes, even jealousy, envy, anger, shame (basically all the ones that have a bad reputation).

What can help is moving to a more neutral perspective on emotions: not labelling them good or bad. That way we may become more accepting of them (they become less scary).

Because emotions are here to stay and they are actually signals our body is telling us to listen to! When we ignore them, we often do more harm than good.

Now, even if it may seem a little scary, I invite you to allow more feelings into your life today. Ask yourself how you are feeling. Noticing where the feelings arise and what sensation they give you, is a good place to start.

So, how are you feeling today?